


Game of Lies

by Radiate_the_Darkness



Category: Camp Camp (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Danvid, M/M, Mentions of religion, Minor Character Deaths, Obsession, Rated M for death stuff, Some triggering stuff maybe later on, Survival Game, Yandere Daniel, Zemuug, future diary au, mirai nikki au, some aged-up characters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-21
Updated: 2018-04-19
Packaged: 2019-03-07 15:51:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 62,932
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13438119
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Radiate_the_Darkness/pseuds/Radiate_the_Darkness
Summary: “The eleven of you have been chosen by yours truly,” the voice paused as the figure shifted in his seat, “to compete in my game.”. . . . .David wakes up as a pawn in a dangerous game of survival. The god who looms above them will yield his throne to the victor. Only, the victor has to eliminate his opponents. And there are eleven of them.Fragments of their memories have been erased to avoid complications in the game. They're put in a world where it's so alike to the real one, they won't notice anything out of place. The eleven users are given phones that can predict their future in various ways, allowing them to change the course of history if need be. David meets his first opponent, but rather than taking him down, he saves David's life. His motive is unclear as his opponent shows signs of interest in teaming up—and in him too.(A Mirai Nikki/Future Diary AU, with other mixed in shit)





	1. Kill me or let God sort 'em out

**Author's Note:**

> Hah. hah. What the hell is this fuckery?  
> For the past few days, I missed writing stories and this kinda came up a while back. I didn't mean to make a story out of this AU. But... I mean, no one else has written a Mirai Nikki AU before. So I figured, eh, why not. Let's put more yandere Daniels out there, shall we? 
> 
> Updates will be inconsistent from now on since my schedule's tight and I've got a lot of planning to do for this fanfic before I release them long chapters (at this point, we all know I suck at making promises so I'm trying to set a word count goal for me to lessen the chapters). So yeah, don't expect too much ._. It might completely suck, or not. I'm just giving in to my desires of writing again. Meaning, the ending isn't thought out yet. And I'm making this up as I go.
> 
> This is pretty much inspired by Future Diary, but it will show elements of The Hunger Games and even The Maze Runner. I'm incorporating elements I see that fit the story better. Also gonna try to avoid that confusing shit in the anime cause, well, there's only so much my sanity can take. So yeah, without further ado, the abomination that is this AU.

The night sky comes into focus, a whirl of black like a fathomless void. The ground felt dry as the man pushed himself up to a sitting position. His fingers ached. His neck ached. He could feel bits of dirt and dried leaves fall from his hair when he shook his head. _Where am I?_ David. That was his name. The man tried to recollect his memories. _How’d I get here?_ He swivels his head to inspect his surroundings. He can’t see a single thing beyond the inky darkness. As David stirs from his stupor, his mind starts to clear the fog. He looks up again. That did not look like the sky. David knows this from the years spent camping outside with his friends and family. If there was one thing David was good at, it’s identifying with nature. He squinted at it, determined to figure out this unnerving feeling he was getting.

He heard a scuffle to his left. He’s snapped out from his thoughts as he searches for any sign of human activity.

“Hello?” his voice comes out tentative, a bit rasp. David tries again. But no one responds. He opens his mouth to speak again but he’s interrupted by another scuffling to his right.

“Who’s there?” a foreign voice greeted him. David’s eyes widened. There were others with him. This voice belonged to a girl.

“Hello? Where are you?” David’s eyes searched, trying to pinpoint the source of the voice.

Something sounded up ahead, like a spotlight coming to life. Too bright lights blinded him for a second. David blinks at the abrupt illumination. It only confirmed his suspicion of the fake sky. It was more like a dome, now that he saw the light. But that’s not where his attention strayed to. There in the center seemed like a throne of sorts. It was mounted on something to elevate it, giving the person sitting on it a superior vibe. David stands up.

He’s about to ask who he was before someone else beat him to it. It was another voice, farther to his right.

“Why are we here? Who are you?” The voice was slightly high pitched. They sounded younger.

The figure being interrogated doesn’t even look to the voice speaking. The figure sat slumped, hooded. David couldn’t see his face. He was all shadow.

“I said—“

“Enough.” The voice resonated around them. It felt like it came from everywhere that David had to look around. He looked up again and he somehow knew it came from the being sat atop the throne. “The eleven of you have been chosen by yours truly,” the voice paused as the figure shifted in his seat, “to compete in my game.”

Chaos erupted around David. Some were protesting that they be freed, some wail about being kidnapped, and one even commented on how this all seemed like that horror movie called the Saw. David reeled in his thoughts. This was too much to absorb. What even was he doing before this? He doesn’t remember.

“I’m disheartened. You haven’t even heard the rules yet.” The figure said. David could detect humor in his voice but didn’t think anyone would be laughing at this situation.

“Hold on a second,” someone interrupted. “Tell me I’m not the only one who’s hearing voices. It’s so dark that I can’t find anyone—ow!” the female voice shrieked. David flinched. “Wh-what the fuck is this?!”

“Ah, it seems you’ve walked into a barrier. You won’t see it, but it’s there to ensure you that you stay put.” The figure said. More noise from people he could not see. The figure waved a hand, silencing them.

“Allow me to explain before you start fighting for your lives,” he said. David choked as he stared up at the dark looming figure. Surely, he heard him wrong?

“Excuse me?” the voice on his left spoke up. The voice sounded calm, collected even. Not a trace of panic. “Are you implying you chose us randomly to fight, just for your sick pleasure?” Accusation in his voice. David found himself staring hard, hoping to see at least one person.

“I do not find joy in killing innocent lives. I am doing this for a reason,” the figure turned his head to David’s left. It was the only sign the figure acknowledged anyone talking to him. It filled the man with relief to know there really was someone there and that he wasn’t hearing things.

“You,” the figure drawled. “I have my bets on you,” the figure looked straight ahead, the conversation done. That last statement made David uneasy. If this guy, whoever he was, put them in a game to fight for their lives and already had his bet on one of them, wouldn’t that make the game unfair?

“If you’ve been awake long, you’ll find that you don’t remember anything that happened before you woke up. This will aid you in playing the game—the game of survival. Such memories will only... hinder you from your goal.” The figure’s voice deepened. Something ominous and promising hid there. David rubbed his arms, scared and lost at what to do. As far as he can remember, he knew he had a family, had friends. But... he panics when he realizes he can’t even see their faces in his murky mind. He _knew_ he had friends, but he can’t tell who they were. Just the lingering feeling of them being there.

He starts breathing hard. This was a serious game. Whoever it is up there has done something to their minds.

“The directions are simple. Get killed, you lose. Your goal is to defeat your fellow opponents in order to win,” he says.

“And if we don’t want to kill anyone?” A young girl’s voice asked. David’s eyes widened. _Oh no_. How young were some of the people dragged in here with him? He couldn’t fathom the thought of children being tossed into this death match.

“Kill, or be killed. That simple.” The figure stood up. A bony limb that looked like his arm came up. The air shimmered and in front of David appeared a three dimensional map. It was huge. There at the very bottom was a red dot.

“This world is designed to look and feel like the real world. This map extends further but you’ll have to discover other areas on your own. Where would be the fun in showing you the whole map?” He cleared his throat. “The red dot that you see is your current location. It is different for every opponent. What they see is different from what the others see, which brings me to the next topic,” his fingers close, dispersing the map.

“Each of you may not see each other now but once the game begins and you find each other along the way, the next time I bring you all here, your opponent will be shown. No sense in hiding if you know who the other is.” The figure circles the throne in slow steps. “And just like the real world, I’ve provided... obstacles along the way. Temptations, if you will.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” A boy asked. David keeps quiet, overwhelmed with the events, he catalogues the voices he’s hearing. Somehow, this could help him recognize them when he hears them again. In the game. He can’t say he fully trusts his memories, but it keeps him distracted from the feeling of being trapped.

“You eleven won’t be the only ones in this world. You may find friends along the way. Acquaintances. None of whom connect to your past life, of course. That would be messy,” the figure paused, facing the other way. “They’re harmless. They’ve no objective in the game but provide each of you company. It’s the least I could do to make this whole situation bearable.”

Someone scoffed.

“What do we get if we win?” David speaks up. Just as he expected, the figure doesn’t bother looking at him. He sees his bony fingers tapping on the throne.

“Ah, the motivation. If you win, you take my place as god. You inhibit the power to turn back time, freeze time, and be in the future. I control everything living and breathing. I can make an entire planet collapse and rebuild it in mere minutes. If you win, you gain that.” The figure rounded the throne and sat back once more. Everyone was quiet, even David. He stared at him suspiciously.

“If you still find it unbelievable, allow me to demonstrate. Not only do I bring destruction, but life as well. He opens his palm up and the air distorts around it. It looked like the space was being sucked into itself, forming a black hole. But it wasn’t a black hole. There in the air above the figure’s palm was an embryo. David couldn’t tell what it was but it was such a small thing curled up. Despite the distance, he somehow knew that it was alive—that the heart was pumping blood into its small body.

David backed away until he hit the tree. He needed something to support himself up. Before him wasn’t any ordinary man. He had powers—godly abilities. Were they truly in the presence of a god? He knew others were thinking the same thing.

“The Almighty,” a male voice whispered.

“It couldn’t be,” another murmured.

“Has Zeemug come to collect us?” the voice to his left awed.

There were a lot of names religion has called a powerful being. So many names, yet they were one and the same—a being higher among the rest who others looked up to. David found the last one weird, having never heard of it in his entire life, but who was he to judge religion?

“You must be the devil,” a woman exclaimed. “To put us here together. To play your game. Why dangle your powers like that, if only to entice us to kill each other for it?”

“Because it consumes you.” The figure started. “You think your god is the same throughout the decades?” He stands up, looking far more threatening as he floats down. “The ability to mold an entire world is not something that sits idly by. It consumes the holder. We live on for a long time because this power grants it, only for it to have the reverse effect as it also feeds on the life. Let it be known that we are immortal, that we are the alpha and omega. But only because there is no solid form. It is only a title, passed to those who win the game.”

“Isn’t it supposed to be like, passing His test? Something about morals and commandments?” A girl asked. The god in front of them nodded.

“The last god did something like that,” and with a flick of his wrist, he ascended once more to the throne. “There’s one more thing I must tell you before the games officially begin. In your pockets, there’s a small device called a phone. They won’t have the same features a normal phone would have since it will only serve one purpose. As a diary.” The figure said.

David furrowed his eyebrow and dug his hand in his jeans pocket. His hand closed around something he was sure wasn’t there before. He pulled it out and brought the screen to life. There was only one app on the screen: Future Diary

“Who would want to log in everyday and write in a diary? That’s kinda stupid,” a male voice scoffed.

“Hold on, it says future diary. I don’t think it’s meant to be written on.” A woman’s voice said.

“Working together already? My, how interesting this game will turn out to be,” the god tapped his fingers on the throne. “Indeed, those are future diaries. You won’t need to write in them. The logs will appear ahead of time. This will work to your advantage and maybe perhaps... your disadvantage.” He chuckled. “Knowing the future can make a person mad.” He drawled.

“So, how do you expect us to kill one another if the other will already be expecting it?” a male voice asked.

“You’re the player, not me. And in addition to that, the phone isn’t only a diary. Breaking your opponent’s phone is... the equivalent of them losing. Break their phone, you get rid of them. It’s the coward’s way of fighting if you can’t stomach killing one another.” The figure’s voice resonated with condescension.

David closed his hands around his phone protectively. He opened the app and on the top left displayed a zero and a one. There were lines but it was blank. He pockets his phone but after thinking, he hides it in the inner pocket of his brown vest instead.

“We’ll be free, right?” A young man’s voice quivered. “If we win, we come out alive?” He asks. David feels sympathetic for the people who are possibly having a breakdown right now. He would be too if it weren’t for his instinct to hold himself together. He has to listen and be aware. He can’t miss a single thing that comes out of their mouths. He might use it to his advantage. Then he feels a sinking guilt in his guts.

 _How could I be thinking of this when other people are probably scared?_ Easy. His mind knew the answer. David wanted to live, just like any other human being. The urge to survive is all that’s keeping him upright. He _can’t_ die here.

The god considers this. David holds his breath. Surely, that’s what winning the game meant. Being the last man standing means being the victor.

“Of course. You win, you get to live,” then the god chuckles darkly. “But you won’t really be free. You’ll be a god when the game is over. You’re free to do anything you want, but the entire world will be on your shoulders. Not just this, but others around it. It’s up to you whether you’ll let your precious Earth die, or bear the burden.”

“That’s fine. Anything’s better than dying here in this fake world,” someone said. David shivers at the cold tone in the voice. Some of them were willing to play this game. Is he? He almost jumps when the god laughs.

“Feel free to make friends with anyone. The only danger here is yourself and your opponents. I made this world just the same as yours to create the illusion of... home. Please try to appreciate my efforts,” the god laughs.

David feels his eyes droop. They’re getting heavy as he tries to blink himself awake. The figure waves his arm around in an arc.

“Sweet dreams. The game begins as soon as you awaken. Let my presence be with you always,” David hears a sickening laugh as his head thuds to the floor, sleep claiming him.

* * *

 

He wakes up a second time, but this time, his memory comes back to him. Not the ones he’s been trying to dig out of his mind, but the ones that happened right before he fell asleep. He remembers what he has to do and where he is. He checks his watch first. It was 11 AM. He frantically touches his vest and sighs in relief as he feels the bulk of his phone.

He retrieves it from his vest. The device fit in his palm, but there was a certain heaviness to it when he held it in front of him. It wasn’t just a phone. If anyone got their hands on it, it’s game over for him. David gulps, feeling dread settle in the pit of his stomach. He opens the screen and taps on the app.

**Welcome, _1 st_ _DIARY USER_**

01

 **[11:10]** _This isn’t a dream. There are so many trees. It feels like I’m getting lost but... I know it’s not the time to give up. Just keep walking and maybe you’ll find someone. Or something. Is this how a diary works?_

David feels chills run up his arm. This was real. He didn’t write it. The phone predicted his future 10 minutes ahead. “Oh my god,” he exhales slowly. _Wake up, wake up! This is just a dream!_ David bites his lip, feeling his eyes burn. He knows it’s not. His fingers grip onto the phone. The solidness of it only assures him of the reality of the situation. He sniffs, willing himself to be strong, and walks. He holds onto his phone in fear of another entry coming up.

The woods were quiet with the exception of David stomping through. On an ordinary day, the woods calmed him. It was his happy place. But now, it all seemed like an endless maze. He frowns as he tries to dig through his memories again. He knew he enjoyed the forest, but... what were the specific memories that made him enjoy it? That’s what his mind failed to conjure. A lingering feeling, but there was no proof.

He remembers a smile. The feeling of butterflies in his stomach. The determination to make someone happy. Friends who he can’t even remember but knew were there for him.

David sobs as he pauses. All the happy memories seemed so empty now. He couldn’t put a face to their murky figure. Whatever that god did to their heads must be the crueller than putting them in this game. I can’t remember anyone. David reaches for the yellow bandana around his neck and wipes his tears with it. He doesn’t even know where it came from or why he’s wearing it. It makes him sob harder.

“Um, hello?”

He jolts away from the tree and looks around. There coming towards him was a girl. She wore a white tank top under her checkered flannel and waist-high shorts. She looked concerned but also wary. She raises her hands and David is compelled to cry more, in relief this time. _Finally! Someone he could talk to!_

“Hi! Yes, I’m sorry. I just—“ he sniffs, wiping the last drops of his tears. Gosh, how was he supposed to initiate a conversation like this?

 _Hold on a sec_.

His expression changes from grateful to terrified.  Could she possibly be one of the diary users? The girl must’ve sensed his fear as her eyes widened a fraction.

“Hey, don’t be scared. I’m harmless, usually. It’s kinda just me here,” she looks around at the forest. “As you can see. Nobody really comes here unless people decide to go camping or whatever. I don’t know why anyone would even bother doing something like that when they could enjoy the luxury of walls and not getting bitten by mosquitos and other insects.” She said the last part as a murmur as if to herself. She looks back up at David.

“Dude, chill. I’m not gonna shoot you or anything.” She puts her hands down. “I’m just kinda curious what brought you here. Like I said, not a lot of people visit the woods,” she crosses her arms.

David has a moment to regain his breathing. She didn’t look like a threat. She even seemed friendly. That put a smile to David’s face. _The world is designed to feel like the real world_. The god’s bitter reminder pops in his head. He almost runs the other direction. But... with her presence, it makes everything slightly better. Better than being alone.

David smiles and tucks away his phone away. “I’m David. I’m sorry, I kinda wandered here alone and I’m lost.” He chuckled nervously. The girl’s on guard features softened and she reached out her hand for him to take.

“I’m Gwen,” they shake hands. “Do you have friends around?” She asks him. David shakes his head slowly, figuring out a story he could tell her if she asked about him. How would these people react to him telling them they weren’t real and was only there to make this world look identical to the real one?

“Well, you look like you know your way around,” she glanced down at his outfit. He followed the motion and realized with a laugh that he did look like one of those camp counselors.

“Well, I assure you I don’t. I wouldn’t be having a breakdown if I did,” he rubs the back of his neck anxiously.

“You... one of those new guys?” She leans on a tree.

David’s throat goes dry. Did she know about the god and the game they’re put in? He almost tells her but her laugh interrupts him.

“Camping is one thing, but coming here unprepared? You’re lucky I found you. Come with me and you can stay at my place. It’s a cabin my uncle apparently owns and I’m spending the summer guarding it.” She walks ahead. She looks back when David stares after her in shock.

“You coming?” She asked.

“Yeah,” David smiles, following behind her. He pulls out his phone while Gwen’s busy telling him about the woods and the precautions of going out here alone. David knew this already, but he wasn’t about to tell her that. It would lead to more suspicion. He glances at the screen and his breath hitches at the new entry.

 01

 **[11:40]** _It all seems so real yet, unreal. Gwen is such a kind person. The only one I’ve met so far. I hope she isn’t one of the diary users. She doesn’t seem to recognize it when I showed her my phone. I guess this means she can be trusted._

15 minutes from now, as he checks his watch. Gwen leads him to a cozy-looking cabin and he follows her up the steps. He almost trips when he crosses the threshold. _I showed her my phone?_ He stares at the screen.

“You cool?” Gwen’s voice drifts from the inside.

“Yeah, just tripped on something.” He mumbles. He hears her snicker. David looks up and his eyes widen. The cabin looked cozier from the inside. There was a couch and a small dining table. The light from the glass windows illuminated the room, giving it a warm welcoming vibe. Home.  It was the realest thing he’s seen since the game started. The trees, although natural, looked suspiciously clustered around to make him feel trapped.

“I’ll go make you a cup of... I dunno. Coffee? You into that?” her head pops out from a doorway to ask him. He nods at her enthusiastically. “Cool. You go sit there and I’ll be right back,” then she vanished into the room. David takes a seat on the couch and inspects his surroundings. If this place was conjured up by that god, then surely, not everything is real. He trails a finger down the leather couch curiously. _Definitely feels real to me_ , he thinks.

He’s called a god for a reason. He excels in making these things look real. He grimaces and looks around some more. He can’t fathom to think that Gwen’s made up too. It disgusts him how this god can make up people and give them a written past, just so he could construct a world for his games. _All this thinking hurts_ , David frowns and rubs his head. He should probably take a rest.

He takes his phone out again and looks at the entries. It hasn’t added anything yet. He inspects the phone and turns it over. No brand name or anything. It was a piece of junk made to only predict their future. David rubs circles over the screen, contemplating how the entries pop up without warning. Did that mean he’ll have to check it every now and then?

“What’cha got there?” Gwen comes up behind him and he jumps. She sets the steaming mug down on the table and takes up the space beside him.

“It’s just this weird phone,” he says. David looks at her and sees her nod. Might as well make the conversation interesting. And so he told her what the phone did. He showed her there was nothing else on it except one app. He watched for any sign of alarm on her face, but she only showed genuine curiosity.

“It ain’t a ruse? Looks kinda fake,” she hums. “That’s weird. I’ve never seen anything like it.” She leans back on the couch. “A lot of people who come down here are photographers. They like to capture “nature’s essence” or so they call it. If you’re into that shit, you should’ve brought a phone with a camera.” She comments. Instead of feeling insulted, David’s shoulders relax. She didn’t recognize the app, which is good.

“Yeah. I should do that next time,” he says. He reaches for the mug and blows on the dark liquid inside it. “Thank you for this. For inviting me here. I’m kinda lost and I’ve nowhere else to go. I don’t know how I could ever repay you.” David smiles sadly at her. He didn’t have anything on him but he was determined to pay her back for her kindness.

Gwen smiled and motioned with her hand. “It’s nothing. Summer’s been a bore and I haven’t seen a lot of people here lately. You’re welcome to stay, if you’re cool with that. You said you didn’t have friends?” she tilts her head at him. He responds with a shake of his head. Then laughs.

“If I’m cool with it? I should be asking you that question. It’s your home,” he sips his warm coffee and sets it down on the table. Gwen rolls her eyes.

“It’s my uncle’s. It’s kinda shitty of him to make me stay here for the summer, just so I could watch over his property when I could be watching my tv shows right now. My Riverdale, Doctor Who, and Teen Wolf,” she sighs. “Precious time wasted.” She shakes her head.

“Not really,” he turns to her. “I think being out in the woods can be an enjoyable pastime! There are so many things to do like—“

“Swim through lakes and climb up trees? Yeah, I’ve heard it before. And done it. It gets boring after a while.” Gwen snickers. “Okay, maybe not too boring. I have yet to learn how to catch fish.”

David brightens up. “I think I know how. It’s a little tricky, but it takes patience.” He sits up straighter and mimes being in a small river. “You gotta feel the flow. Be one with the water.” He raises his arms in a steadying stance.

Gwen bursts out laughing. This makes David smile. “Shhh. I’m trying to feel the flow.” This makes her laugh harder. David can’t help but chuckle as well. “Then, once you got the prey in your sights, strike em’ where you think they’ll swim to. They’re basically walking right into your trap.” He makes a stabbing motion at the air below him. Gwen snorts.

“It takes patience and practice.” He lifts his chin up in pride. He feels like he’s done it before. It only makes other guffaw.

“Yeah, well, let’s hope the fishes are patient with you when you pull off that trick in the streams.” She smirks. David puts a hand over his chest, feigning hurt.

“I’ll have you know I’m good at catching fish.”

Gwen stands up and offers him a hand. “Well, congratulations David, you’ve officially earned your stay at Campbell’s residence. You fish for us, you get to stay.” She says, then gives him a small smile. “I’ll go get you a pillow and some blankets. You can sleep on the couch.”

David says his thanks and watches as she disappears around another corner. He walks to the window and looks out. The trees look less terrifying now. The sun provided the forest light where there was shade, something he didn’t notice when he was out there walking, looking for something to assure him he wasn’t alone in this world. It brightened his mood. _I’ve made a friend_ , he thinks. It makes him smile. The survival game has yet to start when he comes across one of his opponents. For now, he’ll have to settle with befriending one of god’s creations.

He helps Gwen set the couch up as his bed and they talk some more. She offers him a bundle of clothes her uncle stashed away but one look at him and Gwen knew the clothes will be huge on him. David ends up using the story he’s made up for her to tell her his past. He tells her he’s  wandered far from home, tells her he’s never visited this place. She tells him stories too, ones he knew aren’t real; ones that are programmed into her so that she could emit that life-like company.

As the sun dipped lower, David and Gwen became fast friends. They exchange stories and David finds himself appreciating her company more. Gwen may be welcoming and nice at first, but when he talked to her more, he finds that she can be snarky and rude at times. She doesn’t mean to insult him so he brushes it away. It gives her character and reassures him the people created in this universe aren’t so fake after all. David’s only relieved to have made friends in this place.

She suggests they drive to town now that the sun’s gone down. Gwen says she prefers going at late noon ‘cause it’s much colder and usually had lesser people. She offers to buy him a couple shirts so that he isn’t stuck with his green shirt, and David expresses his thanks once more. The shirts may not fit him but with a belt, the pants seem pretty okay.

They get into the car and Gwen takes the wheel. She turns the radio on and switches from station to station. One particular station caught the man’s attention.

“Wait,” he says. Gwen’s finger pauses on the knob. The broadcaster on the radio spoke through the static, saying there’s been another mutilated body found earlier this morning. David stares at the radio, uncomprehending until Gwen snaps him out of it.

“For the past few days, a killer’s been on the loose. Don’t worry, it’s only farther out in the city. It doesn’t make me feel any safer but at least I’m not out there, near the area, y’know?” Gwen grimaces. “God, it’s fucked up. Why do people have to kill each other?” She mumbles.

“How long has this been going on?” David asks, numbly twiddling his fingers and reaching for his phone.

“Um, almost a week if I remember. This fucker’s merciless. I heard they killed a child once.” She blows out a breath. She looks over at him when he stays quiet. “I’m sorry you ended up here in this freak town but... I assure you you’re pretty safe with me,” she smiles. She looks ahead and parks the car.

“Why’d we stop?” David asks, looking toward the town lit up with lights and people walking around.

“I prefer to park my car outside of town. Not too far but just enough so that they won’t ask me for a parking ticket,” she snickers as she gets out of her side of the car. David sighs, exiting the car as well. They walk quietly towards the bustling activity. Gwen suggest they visit the cheapest store where she can buy him shirts and after, maybe order some takeout. David nods as he takes in everything, momentarily forgetting the murderer on the radio.

While Gwen’s dragging him around, he studies the faces around him. They’re genuine enough, strangers coming here to relax, to eat, to hang out. They talked, gossiped, laughed. It was all so real. Gwen cursed, excusing herself for a second as she ran to the restroom. David laughed, shooing her when she made him promise to stay put. He uses the time to sneak a glance at his phone. His blood runs cold as he finds four new entries. Two entries recounted his experience back in the cabin with Gwen and one in the car. At least, that’s what he can deduce from it. The recent one seemed to be minutes from now, as he checks his watch. The hairs on the back of his neck rose.

 

01

 **[12:53]** _Gwen allowed me to stay over. She prepared pillows and even gave me clothes. They don’t fit but at least I have something to change into when I’m staying over. Gosh, it’s really happening. I’m living out this nightmare and Gwen’s the only person who’s been so kind to me. I hope it all goes well from here._

 **[14:04]** _I think I’m making progress. She appreciates my company as much as I do with her. The mug’s all finished and I feel like getting more, but I don’t want to feel too home-y just yet._

 **[17:41]** _Gwen turns on the radio and they said they found a dead body in the town we’re going to. Gwen says it’s far but… it doesn’t exactly erase my doubts. Could it be one of the diary users? I don’t want them to find me. I don’t want to die this early._

David almost vomits. This sounded exactly like his thoughts. He puts a hand over his mouth, taking in the words on the screen. The diary entries captured everything he’s been feeling and thinking. It wasn’t a ruse. This was a sick game and after the radio incident, he knows people are out there looking to eliminate their rivals. He was one of them. He scrolls down to the recent entry.

 

01

 **[17:52]** _Who was that? I caught someone’s eye when I looked around and I can’t help but feel so exposed. He was already staring when I found him. Gosh, can this day get any tenser? But his eyes... they were so blue..._

David feels his skin prickle. Just like that, he’s compelled to look up. The people around him don’t seem to notice the change in his expression, how alarmed he felt and how his heart beat faster. They only wove past him. He searches the crowd instinctively, hoping the diary entry would be false.

But as his eyes land on a man’s face, it only proved the diary entry to be right. Blue, bright blue eyes pierced through him. Something about the way he stared sent chills down his spine. David stopped breathing when he locked eyes with him. His blonde hair was gelled up, giving him that suave look. His perfect eyebrow arched as David continued to stare, memorizing every inch of his face in fear that his diary mentioned him for a reason.

 _Maybe I’m being paranoid_. He looks away and almost exclaims in relief when Gwen exited the restroom. 

She looks at him suspiciously. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” she says. David giggles nervously and walks to her side.

“Just tense, I guess.” He grips his phone tightly. Gwen shrugs and leads him away. He looks back reluctantly to find the familiar face, but he’s gone.

They enter the store and walk through aisles, contemplating which shirt fit him better. He argued it didn’t matter, that he was more than thankful for her to provide so much for him. She only smiled, bowed, and continued to toss him tees, flannels, and at one point, a tank top.

“Gwen, I am not wearing this,” he picks up the sleeveless fabric in horror. She swivels around when he said her name. After seeing what she tossed him and doing a short inspection of his build, she bursts out laughing. David’s face heats up as he calmly puts the shirt down.

“You’re right. You’re right. You don’t look the type to wear tank tops. Sorry,” but she didn’t sound apologetic at all. She marches on, picking up fabrics and putting them over his arm. David can’t help but smile at her enthusiasm. Once they finished an aisle, she turns to him and pokes his chest.

“Okay, three shirts. If you don’t like any of them, we check the next aisle,” she shoos him into one of the dressing rooms. He grins but stops before he could enter. He turns around to meet her stare.

“Why are you doing this?” he asks, confused and touched she’s spending so much and risking a lot for a stranger she just met. The brunette shrugs, looks down at her feet for a moment.

“It’s certainly fun than sitting in that damn cabin doing nothing. Or coming out here alone and eating fast food by myself. So, why not, David?” Gwen says. David offers her a kind smile. She returns it softly. “Now go, before I change my mind and toss you another tank top.” She threatens him. He laughs as he enters the dressing room.

He closes the door with a click and faces the mirror. He’s almost surprised to see himself there. _What a silly thought_ , he pursed his lips. He takes off his bandana and the vest, hanging it on one of the hooks. He picks a random shirt from the pile without looking as his eyes won’t leave the mirror. He walks closer to it.

The god may have erased their memories, the faces of the people who meant most to them, but he spared them the memory of their own faces. With his memories violated, David feels uneasy looking at the face before him. Like somehow, the god tampered with it too. _But nope, that’s me alright_.

He raises a delicate finger to his face, tracing his jaw and the splatter of freckles on the bridge of his nose and his cheeks. This was him, and he was there. His green eyes bore into the mirror, staring back at him. His attention drifts to his ruffled auburn hair. He huffs as he runs his fingers through it, combing and arranging it into a style that suits him. He grins at his reflection. And then it drops.

 _This is all an illusion_. He reminds himself. But he manages to put it back on when he recalls Gwen waiting in the other side, no doubt wanting to see him. So he tries on the pile of clothes she got him and picks the ones he thinks look good on him. He opens the door and waves Gwen over. She puts down the shirt she was looking at and stalks toward him.

She whistles. “Not bad, dude.” David gives her a pursed smile and does an awkward little spin. She laughs as she pretends to critique him. David chose a simple gray tee shirt with black sleeves. She clicks her tongue and nods.

“Approved. What else you got?” she asks.

They do this for two rounds until he’s got three shirts draped across Gwen’s arm. He insists that two were enough but she, again, threatens to lock him in the dressing room until he finds one more. He comes back to the dressing room to change into his green shirt and vest. After pocketing the bandana instead, he retrieves his phone from his vest pocket. The smile he’s been carrying around Gwen fades. One new entry unread. Dated again past the time on his watch. _Gosh, how can I be so careless?_ He reads through it carefully.

 

01

 **[18:30]** _Someone’s in the store. I thought she was just an ordinary customer looking around, but she barely even looked through the clothes. She looked at me. And looked away. Then she looked at me again, but I was busy talking to Gwen. She seems suspicious._

David balks at his phone. He comes out of the dressing room still staring at the entry. It didn’t make sense. David didn’t see anyone, didn’t even notice anyone looking at him. “Gwen?” he calls after her. He hears her call back and says she’s at the cashier. He squints at his phone. 6:30PM was the time it happened. It was now 6:45 PM.

He looks up to find Gwen at the cashier. He goes to her but he halts when another entry pops up.

 

01

 **[18:47]** _She exits the store. She looks back at me once before leaving. Something’s not right. Something’s not right. She’s no ordinary customer. Why’d she look at me like that? It’s the phone. She saw the phone. She must’ve recognized the phone._

David’s eyes take in the text quickly as he sees the time displayed on the left corner. Who was future David talking about? He looks up from his phone and does a quick scan of his surroundings. The store wasn’t full and there were only a handful of customers. He anxiously glances at his watch. One more minute. The diary stated a she, so he looked for a female suspect. There were only two of them, plus Gwen. One had short black hair and plugged in earphones. The other one—is walking towards the exit. David’s eyes follow her. For a second, she looks back and catches his eye. She knows. David’s eyes widen as she turns on her heels and walks away, long brown hair bouncing as she clutches her purse.

“Daviiiid?” he snaps to Gwen’s direction. “I called you like, two times now. Here,” she hands him a paper bag. He looks inside and sees the tees she brought to the counter with her. He mumbles a thank you, a bit distracted by the lady who left the store. Gwen drags him to a fast food resto and orders for both of them. He lets her choose since the dread had been enough to spoil his appetite.

David excuses himself as he goes to the restroom, his phone still in his hand. In the silence, he hears a small _ding_. He checks his phone as he enters a cubicle.

 

01

 **[19:05]** _Someone enters the restroom. They lock the door. I turn around and see the 3 rd diary user. I ask what she’s doing in the men’s toilet. She looks like she’s faking her surprise._

 **[19:07]** _She takes something out of her purse and lunges at me, a knife in hand. She stabs me in the neck twice._

**DEAD END**

David tenses as he sees the bold letters on his screen. “Dead end?” he whispers under his breath. He rereads the last entry. _She stabs me in the neck twice. I’m going to die. She knows I’m here_. He starts shaking and yelps when the door to the restroom opens with a bang. He looks at his watch fearfully.

His face contorts into confusion as he reads the time. It’s only 6:59 PM. Had the killer come earlier? Nonetheless, he keeps his mouth shut. He stares at his phone, rereading the text over and over again as he lends one ear to the intruder. Slow, careful steps. Until those feet are in front of the cubicle he occupied. His throat clogs up with fear.

“David, I need you to listen to me,” a male voice started from the other side of the door. David’s head snaps up. _That wasn’t a she. That definitely was not a she_. He looks back down at the phone. It hasn’t changed.

“I need you to open this door and come with me, right now. I won’t hurt you. I’m here to protect you,” the voice on the other side softened. The cubicle door shook in its hinges as weight was put on it. “Please trust me. I know who and what you’re here for. You have about five minutes to come with me until the 3rd diary user shows up.” He says. David starts breathing again and stands up. Whoever was on the other side of the door knew about his death. But he was also an opponent.

“How do I know you won’t kill me when I come out?” he asks steadily. He puts a hand on the door and glances at his phone.

“Cause then your diary entries would change to fit this current situation.” He sounded almost smug. The brunette checks his phone and surely enough, it hasn’t changed. The man on the other side was telling the truth. He has four minutes now.

David decides to open the door. The man leans away. As he comes face to face with another diary user, he realizes with a start that... he was the guy. He found those blue eyes familiar and knew the phone mentioned him a few hours ago. The other sees his reaction and a small smile tugs on the blonde’s lips.

“I’m Daniel. It’s nice to meet you,” he smiles charmingly at him. “Although not the best place to meet but due to circumstances, we’re kinda forced into this awkward situation.” He looks down at his own watch. David takes a moment to inspect him from top to bottom. That was... certainly a sight. Daniel was pale and his hair looked more platinum blonde. He wore a white polo with the hem tucked in his gray jeans. Even his watch strap was white. Everything about him seemed so immaculate.

“I suppose it’s time to go. Wouldn’t want to meet your killer now, would you?” The man winks and offers his arm. David was too stunned to say anything or refuse. So he takes his arm shakily and walks out the restroom with a new companion.

“19:04 with just a minute to spare. Boy, is she going to love this new plot twist,” he grins as he steers him out of the restaurant and practically hauls him to the other direction.

“Hold on, I can’t- this is too much to handle. Where are we going? My friend’s still in there! I can’t leave her,” David stutters. Daniel only spares him a glance as they resume walking. David glances at his phone as he hears a static noise emit from it.

 

01

 **[19:06]** _Daniel brings me outside of town where it’s quiet. It’s empty and we’re all alone. But for some reason, I feel safer with him. The 3 rd diary user just realized I’m not in the restroom anymore._

He reads the text and feels himself cling onto Daniel tighter. _Will this stranger really keep me safe?_ David reasoned that there’s no way he would, that he was still an enemy. But as he stares at the screen, he sees the DEAD END mark vanish.

“It seems I have a lot to explain,” the man interrupts him. They’re already outside as the cool air hits his face. He had no reason to hold onto his arm anymore but David feels a strange calm in being attached to him. So he doesn’t move. “But that’ll have to wait.” Daniel glances at his phone, probably reading a new diary entry.

“Are we safe yet?” David asks, looking around warily. There’s no way anyone could’ve followed them out here. It would be too suspicious.

“Ah, geez. I guess not. We still got company,” he angles the phone towards him so David could read it. The brunette almost laughs seeing the phone color coordinate with Daniel’s outfit. He leans closer to get a better look and skims over the other earlier entries.

 

02

 **[19:06]** _David willingly comes with me. Death hates being cheated on, but sorry. This one’s mine <3_

 **[19:10]** _The 3 rd diary user is still after David. David hides in a corner as he waits for her to approach. I will not let her come closer. I will not let her even touch him._

 **[19:11]** _David is safe. The threat is eliminated. There is no longer a DEAD END mark on him._

As he scans, he feels his cheeks heat up. His entries were all about him. He catches the blonde’s eye when he hears him chuckle.

“I certainly do have a lot of explaining to do. Maybe we can meet up once all of this is over and talk it over some lunch?” Daniel smiles. He raises his eyebrows in disbelief, cheeks going redder. “Oh, my bad. We still got a killer on our tail. Okay, here’s the plan. I need you to hide farther along that building. I won’t leave you, I promise. I’ll wait for her to come around and I’ll get her myself.” Daniel detaches himself from David.

“What do you mean you’ll go get her yourself?” he asks while his eyes adjust to his dark surroundings. He needed to hide. His watch read 7:08 PM.

Daniel clicks his tongue at him. “Didn’t you hear the rules of the game? It’s kill or be killed. Now, go ahead. Let me take care of this nuisance,” he grins, watching David as he finds a place to hide. David finds a small alleyway and squeezes himself in. He hopes that Daniel carries out his promise. If not, then he’s surely going to die right there.

In the quiet of the night, he hears footsteps retreating. He checks his phone to confirm that it was indeed Daniel, who decided to hide behind a store, a little further from him. He doesn’t need to check as another set of feet rounded the corner. He looks at his phone and frantically hopes the blonde would be okay.

 

01

 **[19:10]** _Daniel is hiding. The 3 rd diary user rounds the corner and doesn’t even see Daniel. Her back is turned to him. He lunges at her exposed back and stabs her with the dagger he’s kept in the waist of his jeans._

The brunette jumps when he hears a muffled shriek come out of nowhere. He closes his eyes and starts breathing slowly. A few seconds later, there was only silence. He checks his phone and sees the new entry.

 

01

 **[19:13]** _Daniel walks me back. No one suspects a thing. Gwen must be so worried._

 **[19:15]** _Daniel meets Gwen. He doesn’t look too happy, but Gwen is. He sits with us for dinner. I think I’m starting to like him._

“What?” David blurts out after reading the text. There was no way this was really happening.

“David?” Daniel asks, coming around the corner to retrieve him. He wipes his hand on his jeans while he carries another phone. “See? I told you you’d be safe,” Daniel smiles. He reaches out a hand for him to take as he pulls him out of the alleyway.

He tucks his phone in his jeans before Daniel could glance at his entries. “That’s not your phone,” he says, looking at the red phone in his hand. The blonde shakes his head.

“It’s from the 3rd diary user. I’ve scanned through it. The entries about you only started appearing around 18:47.” Daniel informs him as he tosses him the phone. David scrolls through and just like he said, the entries were about him. It revealed where he went to and where he can be cornered. It was a diary made for stalking. Or worse, murdering. Before 18:47, there hadn’t been much entries.

“The entries revealed your location the moment she found out you were a diary user. I had to put that theory to test since she hasn’t met me, of course. I hid and if I were wrong, then she should’ve known I was there. How interesting this game of survival is,” Daniel hums, watching David as he scrolls through the entries.

“You know what’s better? I caught her looking at her phone when her diary entries changed, putting the DEAD END mark on her. I guess it sensed my intentions too late when she was busy focusing on her target,” Daniel comments.

The brunette shivers at the implication. He couldn’t bear to look at the body. He only hopes the man disposed of it before coming to retrieve him. David pauses at one entry and reads the preceding texts.

 

03

 **[20:24]** _The 8 th diary user in a boy in his teens, Nurf, who’s currently out getting wasted. He’s within the area, to my right. He hasn’t seen me yet. Poor boy’s too drunk to notice when danger’s lurking in the corner._

 **[20:45]** _His friends just left him. Now’s the time to move. He’s in the same spot_.

 **[20:48]** _Shit! This kid’s smart. He knows how to crack his bottles, alright. The wound in my arm will heal. Just gotta take this little shit down._

 **[20:50]** _He’s pinned. Before I could stab him, he surprises me by flipping us over. He kicks the knife away._

 **[20:53]** _His phone is on the ground. He’s ten feet away from it. I’m three feet away._

 **[20:54]** _Nurf, the 8 th diary user, is vacuumed into thin air. He disappears without a trace, leaving behind the phone I threw at the wall. The screen is cracked. There’s no use for it now. Two down, eight to go._

“Whoa,” David exhales, the goose bumps blooming on his skin. He feels disgusted as he reads the events leading up to this boy’s demise.

“I know, right? This phone could’ve been so useful. Sadly, it only operates in the hands of its diary user. We have no use for it now.” Daniel makes a move to grab it, but David puts a hand up.

“No, wait. What if she killed others? It’ll help to know who else are eliminated in this game,” he looks up at him. Those blue eyes stared him down, trying to calculate his intentions but his features softened and he nods at him. David smiles and without a word, turns around to walk back. He pauses at the edge of town where they’re out in the open.

“That girl. Did she vanish too?” He asks the blonde quietly. Daniel tilts his head to the side.

“Yeah she did, after I struck her in the nape of her neck.” The blonde puts his arm around the man and places his hand on his shoulder. David looks at it accusingly, a bit afraid and a bit creeped out.

“Uh, thanks for saving me. I thought I was going to die back there,” he says, changing the topic. Daniel shifts closer to him so that both of them walked side by side. The brunette feels a tingling sensation go down his spine. He faces the other direction to hide the uncomfortable blush on his face.

“I couldn’t possibly let that happen. Besides, I figured you’d need me,” Daniel says. He wills the uncomfortable look away before facing the blonde.

“What are you talking about?”

“Don’t you see?” Daniel faces him. They were receiving looks from strangers as they stood in the middle of a sidewalk. David turns his head and sees the restaurant. He panics, hoping Gwen would still be there and forgive him for leaving so suddenly. The blonde follows his line of sight and heaves a sigh.

“Let’s not worry your friend, then. I’ll explain everything to her,” he winks at David as he loops his arm around his again and drags him towards Gwen’s location. The brunette splutters in indignation, unprepared to face Gwen yet.

He pockets the other phone and enters the restaurant, eyes searching for his friend. Gwen finds him first and waves him over.

“David, the hell? You just up and left me here while you went and found yourself a stud muffin. Who looks kinda like you. Okay, it creeps me out but what’s with the getup?” Gwen motions to Daniel. The man beside him laughs and lets go of his arm.

“How nice of you to deduce that. I apologize for stealing David here for a few minutes. See, my religious group saw potential in him and wanted to see if he’d be willing to join us. Apparently, he wasn’t interested and, well, we struck up a conversation instead. He’s quite a friendly fellow,” he gives David a small teasing smile. It doesn’t help in calming his nerves. His face heated up. He did not think he’d imply _that_.

“Ooooh, I see. In that case, would you mind sitting with us? You’re going to have to buy your own food. I’ve been spoiling David the entire day,” she glances at him and smirks. She offers the seat next to David and pretty sure, he could feel himself melting. _Gosh, Gwen, why? What’d I get myself into?_

Daniel feigns an exaggerated gasp. “Why, thank you. I wouldn’t mind at all. My name’s Daniel,” he reaches over.

“Gwen,” they shake hands. His friend’s looking at him with mirth in her eyes.

 _Oh gosh, oh gosh_. The brunette sinks lower in his seat.

“So tell me, David. What have you and _Daniel_ been up to?” She laces her fingers as she interrogates him. She nudges the wrapped chicken twister towards him. Apparently, she ate already while he was gone.

David conjures another story with Daniel adding in parts of his own. He didn’t have to fake the blush on his face, as he was already embarrassed especially with the way the blonde keeps looking at him like he couldn’t let him out of his sight. Gwen seemed to notice to and sent him secretive knowing looks when Daniel wasn’t paying attention to her.

After dinner, he’s relieved to finally part with the man. The day’s been so exhausting. David’s drained of his energy so much that he doesn’t even protest to Daniel giving him a quick hug. Briefly, he feels something brush against his jeans. Then Daniel backs away and bids him farewell. On the ride home, Gwen’s pelting him with her fangirling and trying to get more info out of him.

He had no words to describe everything. He only chuckled when Gwen teased him, only replied when necessary. Gwen must’ve noticed his lack of energy and further urged him to bed when they got home.

“Did I ever say thank you? Cause I believe you deserve more than just a thank you, really.” David mumbles as he hits the couch. Gwen puts the paper bag on the table.

“Hell yeah I deserve more than that. But, you know what? This summer’s been hella interesting. Thanks for that too.” She says goodnight and leaves him to his own devices.

David brings out his phone and checks the last diary entry for the day.

 

01

 **[19:50]** _Daniel and I part ways. He hugs me and slips a note in my right pocket. As I turn away, walking with Gwen, Daniel turns back to watch me leave._

The brunette stares at his phone, that crawling dread coming back. Daniel was... strange. But he practically owed him a life debt since he saved his life. He reaches in his pocket and feels a slip of paper hidden there. He pulls it out and squints at the small handwriting.

_‘Thank you for today, David. I would love for us to meet again, possibly soon. If you could, meet me in the same place? I’ll be waiting the whole day. I’ll buy you food this time. I’ll also explain everything you need to know. I know you have questions for me._

_Love, Daniel’_

David tucks the slip of paper in his vest as he undresses. He gets under the sheets, wanting to forget everything that’s happened. He drifts away into a dreamless sleep.


	2. I got nothing but dreams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter's going to explain the partly confusing shit in chapter one. I kinda dropped all that on you in the beginning but.. no worries. Thy questions shalt be answered. I'm mixing in a lot of The Maze Runner here since the story wouldn't make sense irl lmao. This chapter's gonna have some Daniel and David bonding too. Sort of. Yeah. And it'll reveal parts of Daniel's um... yandere side I guess.
> 
> Speaking of yandere, I just got into Killing Stalking. HOE BOI. It's my new guilty pleasure. I could never write anything similar to that fucked up-ness but... I'm sorry if Daniel starts to sound a bit like Sangwoo o-o just a heads up I guess. 
> 
> BUT YAY I finally got time to write again. I'm sorry if some things sound so repetitive >_> I don't trust my grammar sometimes.

David wakes up to the smell of breakfast. Not exactly a grand buffet, but sizzling bacon and eggs were still a nice sight in the morning. He greets Gwen a good morning and sits down next to her.

“Had a good rest?” She mumbles through her chewing. David nods. Although he isn’t looking forward to another day in this virtual reality, he admits being with Gwen in their small cabin is relaxing. Something he could get used to. If only it were like this in real life...

He jumps from his seat. _The phone!_ The brunette almost forgot about the diary. “Excuse me, Gwen,” he gets up and finds his vest where he retrieves the device. _Please let this day be uneventful. I’m not ready to face another murderer two days in a row_ , David guiltily thinks as he powers up the phone and opens the app. Yesterday, he should’ve been dead. The redhead should’ve been stabbed in the neck, losing the game in less than a day. But someone came up to him and changed his fate.

The man comes back to the dining table with his green eyes glued to the screen. This doesn’t go unnoticed by the other brunette.

“God, David. It’s 10 in the morning. Can’t you let go of your phone for just a second?” Gwen comments from the table. David doesn’t respond; his eyes assessing the diary entry.

 

01

 **[10:26]** _I toss a different shirt on and leave the cabin. Today, I’m walking to town. Nothing like the smell of nature in the morning as I stroll down memory lane. Except, I don’t have solid memories now, do I? The only memories I’ll have are of this game. And this world._

“You’re really serious about this, aren’t you?” The change of tone in her voice—from light-hearted taunting to concern—makes his head snap up. Gwen looks at him with eyebrows drawn together. “That shit you said yesterday. You weren’t kidding?” She leans and tries to peek at his phone.

For a second, David considers holding it to his chest. But for now... he lets her. He sits back down and heaves a sigh. “As real as this place could ever be,” he mumbles, putting the phone down on the table. Gwen tilts her head, no doubt reading the text.

“What does that mean?” She asks. “What game?” After taking a bite of her food, she looks to him in question. _I think it’s best if she doesn’t know._ David grimaces and rubs his face. _Golly, why does everything have to be so... crazy?_ He snatches up the phone and hides it in his jeans pocket.

“It’s nothing to worry about. Just a dumb ol’ game my friends and I used to play. It’s um, scarring, to say the least,” if she could detect the lies in his voice, she didn’t tell him. She only nodded slowly, accepting the story for what it is.

“You... wanna talk about it?” She asks, chewing her food thoroughly. David kindly declines, and leaves the room. He’s had enough for breakfast. “Y’know, if you really are planning to walk to town like your phone says, I suggest you should change. The smell won’t do you good if you get there all sweaty. And if you’re meeting who I think you’re meeting, you should definitely dress up.” Gwen winks before David opened the door. He laughed awkwardly and didn’t bother to tell her she was right.

After pointing to the direction of the bathroom and doing a quick wash, he tossed on one of the shirts from the bag and reused his jeans. He thinks about leaving the vest, but couldn’t help it as he puts it on instead. He tucks the phone in one of its pockets and exits the cabin.

David has the entire walk to contemplate about yesterday. _Day one, already caught by one of my opponents. This is just my luck. And here I am, meeting another guy who could possibly turn on me. Just what the heck am I doing?_ David sighs, tired of his inner turmoil. He looks around and makes sure he’s going the right way. The last thing he needed was to get lost. Again. But as his doubts stop pestering him, the sight of the woods began to put him at ease. His rigid shoulders became lax as he takes in a deep breath. The scent of earth filled him with happiness.

 _Calm yourself, David. If Daniel were after me, I’d know by now_. To emphasize this, he looks down at his vest pocket. It sucked that the phone didn’t notify him every time a new entry popped up. It would surely put anyone on edge if their next move were to be predicted like that. It’s possible they’d be driven mad, waiting for the phone to predict their future—if they lived to see the next day or have it end right there.

 _This god surely knew what he was doing, alright_. David pursed his lips. He briefly wondered if this god, whoever he was, had the ability to hear his thoughts. _In that case, you’re a big bunch of hooey. You good-for-nothing monster. How dare you strip us of our memories and pit us all against each other?_ David glares at the ground, hoping he got the message across.

His hand slithers to his other pocket where he kept the 3rd diary user’s phone. He opens the phone and scrolls through the diary entries. He scrolled past the red, block letters at the end of the entry, past yesterday’s events, and past the kid who’s unfortunate enough to encounter her. Through the entries, he’s able to gather very few information about her and more on the victims she set her sights on. Her name was Penelope Priss, and she was the devil in heels. The most her diary contained were places she’s been to and if she recognizes one of the other diary users, their whereabouts.

David goes numb as he reaches another diary entry, confirming his suspicions last night. Nurf, the 8th diary user wasn’t the only one she killed. It makes him wonder just how long he’d been asleep, or brought into this world. How long had the first player of this game been here? And who were they? The numbers on their phone didn’t indicate that, since David had been labeled as “1st” but he wasn’t exactly the first one here.

 

03

     **[13:02]** _Target found. First opponent confirmed. Neil, 4 th diary user. There’s a huge crowd here today. Everyone’s watching Goodplay’s performance on stage, except Neil._

     **[13:11]** _Neil is approximately 20 feet away. Target is suspicious. Too many witnesses. But there’s an alley close by._

     **[13:20]** _Lost sight of him! That brat probably got alerted with the mark and is on the run._

 **[13:21]** _On the run to the next building, where the alley is close to. Perfect time to move._

 **[13:27]** _A glass bottle shatters in front of me, narrowly missing my face by a few inches. Neil is aware this is his last day in this world. Say goodbye to godhood._

 **[13:30]** _Opponent eliminated. That was much easier than I thought. His diary entries are useless. It only records those who he thinks are suspicious. Damn, he saw me before I even saw him. This kid is terrible at hiding._

Even as the text is displayed, David feels as if he’s holding the phone the very moment when she ended Neil’s life. And it sickened him. She found no remorse in killing him. She was only after the prize. Suddenly, David doesn’t feel awful for letting Daniel end her.

But could he stop Daniel if he were the same?

David checks his phone for a change. One new entry just popped up as he opened the app. But upon reading, he went lax at the news. It only alerted him of the town being a few minutes away from now. He pockets the phone.

It was only then did he realize Daniel didn’t clarify which place they were meeting _._ _I hope I can rely on my phone to tell me_. The brunette continues scrolling through the 3 rd’s diary entries, the silence of the forest now penetrated by the sound of birds tweeting overhead.

Aside from Nurf and Neil, she hasn’t seen anyone else. Or at least, hasn’t confirmed anyone else as a diary user. Daniel was right. When she found out they were users of the future diary, she gained knowledge about their location. That was probably how she figured David out when he kept checking his phone in the store. And seeing him react like that in public… _Oh wow, now that I think about it, I should really learn to hide my paranoia more_. The brunette palms his face, embarrassed and fearful at what had gone down the other day.

He almost died. He wasn’t careful enough. Here he was, hoping to outlive the game, when he’s already putting a huge neon sign on him for his opponents to notice.

Then Daniel came along.

The knight to this helpless damsel. David grumbled, not happy with praising Daniel with such words when he managed to kill someone with no remorse, just like Penelope did. Which makes him no better. But why did David not fear him? He was still walking, still fulfilling their plan to meet-up and clarify things. Why didn’t he turn back now and hide there in the cabin with Gwen?

 _‘Cause I’m a part of this game, whether I like it or not. And Daniel seems to be the only ally I have. Not only did he kill for me, he saved me! I shouldn’t judge him so quickly._ He stashes the 3rd diary user’s phone away and marches on out the forest and into the city.

David makes a mental note of checking his phone often and not forgetting it existed. As he walks around, he sees a few people come and go. Some were couples out on a walk, some old and married, some young and carefree. He holds his phone out like he’s messaging someone and spies another entry.

 

01

     **[11:01]** _Daniel’s already here. Has he been waiting for me?_

That’s it. That was the entry. David looks at his phone disbelievingly. Surely, the entry could tell him where he was—

“David!” someone called out.

The man looks up in surprise as he sees the blonde hair and white attire. _Speak of the devil._ He subconsciously does a quick scan of the other, and stops himself before doing another once over.

“Daniel,” He greets back.

“Sorry, I just couldn’t wait and thought I’d meet you halfway. I know you already ate so, why don’t we just walk?” He offers his arm. It looked so natural for the other to act so close around him, despite only meeting him the other day. David offers him a small smile and walks beside him.

“How’d you know I already ate?” He looks at him sideways. The blonde grins, a wicked looking smile on his face. That wasn’t the intended effect but it sure did bring his attention to his lips.

“I think we should sit down for that. I told you yesterday. I’m sure that even surprised you,” he said. David’s eyebrows pull together as he recounts the events of yesterday. Then he remembers—and it sends a chill through him.

“Your... diary?” He whispered under his breath. A smile was the only answer he got.

They find a bench and sit together with David making sure to put a measurable amount of space between them. They were at a small park. The trees were enough so that it provided shade. It was peaceful and the brunette wished it would stay that way.

“Are you sure this is the perfect place to talk about it?” David looks around, assessing the people in their area.

The blonde shrugs. “It’s good for a first date, isn’t it?”

David pauses and looks pointedly at him. “Um, a date? I just want to... clarify things. About the game.” The other man tilts his head, a small smile on his lips. David feels like a specimen being thoroughly inspected on. He shifts uncomfortably in his seat and faces Daniel. “You’re part of this game too, right? So how come you aren’t coming after me?” he swallows.

“David, I know basically everything about you. I know everything you do and I’ll know who dare comes after you,” his words are like smoke coiling around him, blocking his lungs. David can’t tell if it’s genuine fear he’s feeling.

“What on earth are you implying?” he scoots away, but Daniel’s quick to hold his hand. Panic rises but he quells it before they could draw attention.

“I could’ve killed you the moment you woke up. I knew your exact location. The person you met. I’m saying I’ve had all these chances to come after you,” he squeezes his hand. “But I didn’t.” He softens his grip, the same time David loosens a breath.

“You’re nuts,” David shakes his head.

“Hey, don’t be like that. I saved you, remember?” he tilts his head and this time, the smile drops. He clears his throat. “Follow my lead. If we act like we’re together, we’ll have lesser chances of being overhead.”

David was about to ask what he meant by it when the blonde tugs on his hand, pulling him flushed against him. “Uhh,”

“Relax. Nobody would dare stare at a couple,” he grins like it was a joke. “It makes people uncomfortable.”

David does a scan of his surroundings and sure enough, a few people met his eyes but quickly averted. Nobody’s stare lingered longer than three seconds. The brunette blushed, unbelieving the situation he’s put in. He can just imagine the entries on his phone warning him of this exact moment and going _this is why you should check it more often_.

“Good. This is perfect. We could talk in hushed tones and it won’t be suspicious. They’ll think we’re whispering sweet nothingness to each other’s ears.” Daniel blows into his ear. The redhead almost jolts out of his grip if it weren’t for the arm around him.

“I feel uncomfortable with this,” David huffed, looking anywhere but at the man. He feels the other chuckle and forces himself to stare at the ground.

“So, questions?” Daniel asks, changing the topic.

“Right,” David squirms. “What the heck do you mean by, “you know everything about me”? I just met you and if that isn’t the scariest phrase I’ve heard in my life, I don’t know what is,” David says, slowly slipping his hand free from Daniel’s grasp. “I don’t mean to insult you. I hope you understand that everything about this is so new to me.”

Without moving away, the blonde pulls out his phone and shows it to the other. He scrolls past them slowly so that David could read each one. If he thought the entries last night he saw were unnerving, these were past the point of stalking. Every little thing he did was written down in his phone. From his breakfast with Gwen, to the shirt he discarded last night. It takes a while but Daniel manages to scroll up to the very beginning of his entries.

“This is insane,” David whispers, leaning closer to take a look.

“I thought so too. When I woke up, I was worried to see my future diary didn’t say jack about me. It was all you, you, and you. I didn’t even know who you were but, the diary talked about you as if you and I were so close. It pinpointed every physical feature, to the type of person you’d be.” Daniel told him.

 

02

**[18:02]** _David has the softest laugh and his eyes will twinkle with precious innocence. Something I never found adorable on anyone else._

**[18:10]** _David likes to wear his vest. It must be connected to his past somehow._

True to his words, the earlier diary entries showed descriptions of David’s face, hair, and body. It described him as outgoing, as bubbly when he was around friends, and that he absolutely loved nature. It described not only the physical aspects of him, but the way he’d go about doing things.

And a lot more.

“Your phone knows more about me than I do,” a nervous laugh bubbled from his throat. It was so unnervingly accurate that he almost felt sick, and giddy. “You know everything about me,” he repeated. _This can change the entire game_. If he’s reading the signs correctly, Daniel’s willingness to protect him can make them invincible to their other opponents. This puts the odds in their favor.

“Correct, yet I don’t know anything about myself. Imagine the dread I felt at finding out I can’t read my own future or not knowing if I’m in danger,” Daniel looks away and down at his phone. His words hit something in David. How scary would it be if his phone—the sole reason for it being used was to know the future before it happened—didn’t predict his future but someone else’s?

“I figured if my diary’s sole purpose is to only predict your future, you must be someone special. That’s why I came to your rescue yesterday,” he puts the phone down and faces David. “I don’t know who you are and why my future diary talks about you, but I think I’m meant to meet you at some point. We could help each other out. You watch my back and I’ll gladly help you eliminate our opponents,” Daniel grins, meeting David’s perplexed stare with his own determined look.

His heart skipped a beat. No, he didn’t imagine it. David could feel his blood rush to his face. _What on earth is happening to him?_ He clears his throat and looks around to prevent Daniel from noticing. “I’d gladly form an alliance with you, Daniel! But the last thing I want is for you to be in danger because of me. I don’t want you to kill other people,” he winces, looking around to see if anyone overheard.

“David, are you starting to care about me?” Daniel laughs, intrigued with him. The man blushes, outraged that he’s being made fun of. “Of course killing is necessary for our survival. If it makes you feel any better, I’ll wait for them to make the first move. Any hostile movements and I’ll attack,” he tilts his head, the same fox-like smile on his face. This doesn’t help calm the pounding of his heart especially since their distance remained within inches from the other.

David takes out his phone on impulse to avoid Daniel’s stare. As he predicted, three new entries have popped up while he was busy talking to the blonde. None were threatening, but to see Daniel’s name displayed like that almost had the same effect.

 

01

**[11:04]** _People are looking at us. Maybe they thought we were together? Daniel doesn’t seem to notice._

 **[11:09]** _Daniel’s way too close for comfort and is holding my hand. It makes my heart beat like crazy, especially when he smiles that smile of his. People have now avoided staring at us._

**[11:20]** _He’s so close now. He’s leaning and—_

David yelps, seeing the words on the screen. He tries to hide it from the other. _Too late_ , he thinks, as Daniel already got a clear view of his screen. He watches his face carefully, and is mortified to see the smile stretch further.

“Look, I have no control of my entries, okay? I’m- I’m sorry if it sounds weird or anything. Yesterday, it was doing that too. No! Not the, um, the you part, but it made entries I didn’t really end up doing? If that made sense?” he rambled, trying to justify his embarrassment but only succeeded in amusing the other. He puts his face in his hands.

“Please don’t look at me like that,” he mumbles miserably. He hears the man beside him laugh.

“God, you are... something,” and David sinks further into the bench. _I’m dying. I must be dying_. The brunette tries to ignore how his laugh made him turn bright red. “You said it wrote entries you don’t do?” Daniel asked.

The brunette lowers his hands, feeling childish all of a sudden. He nods and before he could keep his phone, Daniel’s hand closes over his and scrolls. He asks where and David shows him the entry yesterday, when the 3rd diary user exited the mall.

“It says here that I saw her. I wasn’t even aware she was there until I read the entry.” He explains. “The phone talks about her like I’ve seen her there.”

“It’s called a future diary for a reason,” Daniel snorts, though not unkindly. “My phone does it too. It talks about you as if we’ve met, but we clearly haven’t. Maybe it’s ‘cause the future is unpredictable and we can alter it any way we want. The entries can go down either path. If I may?” he holds his hand out. David looks at him and his phone. There’s a split second where he fears the blonde could crush it or throw it against a wall, ending him right there.

But his small smile removes any of his doubts. Something genuine and pleading and thankfully, he finds no sign of ill intent. Something like relief passes over Daniel’s eyes when he handed it over.

He scrolls, eyeing the past entries. The brunette wraps his arms around himself, feeling self-conscious all of a sudden that someone’s reading through his diary. And goes red when he remembers some of his recent entries have been about Daniel. He can see him pause and read, pause and read. At one point, his eyes widened fractionally and his lips quirked upward. David digs his nails into his arms.

But Daniel doesn’t comment on it. He just keeps scrolling until he reaches the very top. He hands it over with a contemplating glance.

“So...?” David asks.

“I’ve got a hunch, but let’s test my theory out,” he looks around the park. The population has doubled since their arrival. Parents with kids, teens with their group of friends, and adults alike.

The redhead watches as the blonde gets up and approach two other guys playing catch with a ball. He squints, trying to decipher what Daniel was doing. The guy he was talking to looked confused, then he catches David’s eye. Daniel says a couple more things before the two guys nodded reluctantly.

“Um, was that your theory?” David asks once the other sat back down beside him. The man checks his watch and smirks.

“I guess you could say that. Keep your phone for now. I’ll tell you when you’ll need it,” he says. David furrows his eyebrows but does as he’s told.

“So, care to tell me more about you?” Daniel asks, putting his arm on the bench. He leans closer to him. “It’d be rude to assume everything my diary said to be true. I’d like to hear about you from you personally.”

Without gauging their proximity, David looks up and finds himself face-to-face with his companion. He goes still as Daniel inclines his head, also curious where this was going.

David doesn’t budge. He watches the other eat up the distance between them.

Then, without looking, Daniel throws an arm out to the side. David reels back when he hears something collide against his palm. It was the ball being tossed around by those two guys. His gaze goes toward the aforementioned two Daniel approached earlier. They were looking at each other uncomfortably.

He hears the blonde get up and toss the ball back. He yells out “thanks!” and does a thumbs-up. The guys nod back.

“What...” David mumbles, in a daze.

“Check your diary,” Daniel smirks, plopping beside him again. David takes out his phone and opens the app. His eyes find the new entry immediately.

 

01

     **[11:21]** _A ball hurls toward me. Before it could reach me, Daniel catches it in mid-air._

“Your phone mentions it like you saw it before it happened. But you didn’t since I distracted you. It wrote the entry that way ‘cause there was a possibility you could’ve seen it, just like the possibility of you seeing the 3rd diary user. Your diary alerts you of your surroundings,” Daniel explains for him, tilting his head when he’s made the connections.

“I also conclude that it writes things down once a person has made up their mind. Before we had this conversation and you were checking your phone, the latest entry was for 11:20, right?” Daniel asks. David’s trying his best to catch up, stuffing all this newfound knowledge into his head. He mumbles a yes when the other has gone quiet.

“So, it would make sense for this entry—“ he taps on David’s phone, “to appear the same time you checked your phone. It’s just a minute away from your last entry, so your phone should’ve listed it down with the other three entries,” He smirks as David’s face heats up. The words “ _He’s so close now. He’s leaning and—_ “ ring in his head. Daniel saw his last entry.

“But it didn’t. I can only guess that it popped up after I asked them to throw the ball at you.” Daniel says.

“Wait, you what?”

“Focus,” Daniel closes his hands around his cheeks, forcing him to look only at him. “If I’m correct, the 11:21 entry only appeared in the duration I walked up to them and after that. It didn’t pop up with the other earlier entries because I didn’t intend to do it before. It was a theory I wanted to test out. I’m still trying to figure out how our future diaries work,” Daniel grinned, still not letting go of David’s face.

The man stared at him with a deer-in-the-headlights look. “You make a lot of good theories,” he says. And he was right. The first time he tested his theory was when he put his life on the line for David. It made a shiver go down his spine. _To be so reckless like that..._

Daniel’s grin transforms into a smile, “Why, thank you.”

“But wait,” David narrowed his eyes. “Why did the 11:20 entry pop up earlier? If your theory’s right, then shouldn’t it have popped up after your plan?”

Daniel’s smile widened. The brunette could feel the intensity of the other’s stare melt right through him. “I already planned to do it earlier, even before I walked up to those two guys. You thought that was part of my theory?” Daniel’s hands were warm against his cheeks. The brunette gulped in shock.

 _He’s so close now. He’s leaning and— did he plan to kiss me before we even met?!_ His face goes up in flames. Daniel laughs and finally lets him go. The man staggers back like he’s been freed from an unknown force. “That settles it. My theory’s right. You’re welcome, yet again, for helping you.” He splays a hand out and executes a small bow from his seat.

“Um,” David covers his mouth with his hand, at a loss for words. He wishes he didn’t take off his yellow bandana after all.

“Stop it you. Come here,” the man laughs as he motions for David to come closer. The brunette looks at him clueless. The white-clad man tilts his head. “You don’t want people to overhear our conversation, do you?”

David shakes his head slowly. The other man motions him closer with a finger. “Then come here this instant and act like my boyfriend,” for a second, his voice drops dangerously low to a purr. A smile breaks his frightening aura. “David, don’t make this harder than it has to be. We’re just trying to take precautions, aren’t we?”

David can hear his heart hammering in his chest. _Thud. Thud. Thud_. As he closes the distance, he lets himself get pulled against the other’s chest. Why was this happening? Why did it have to be like this? He’s in the arms of a psychopath. It scared him—and thrilled him.

“David, listen to me. I’m sorry for embarrassing you, but you never really know who could be listening in. I’m doing this for your safety,” David jolts as he feels Daniel whisper into his ear. He nods in understanding. He’s got a whirlwind of emotions and he doesn’t know how to put it at rest. If Daniel was a radio, he was surely broken. He could never get his mixed signals.

What was a man like David supposed to do?

He doesn’t think as Daniel snakes his arm securely around him. He doesn’t budge when Daniel leans his forehead against his temple. It’s all for show, isn’t it?

“In that case,” David started, turning his head and touching noses with the blonde. He felt a bloom of pride as he saw the other taken aback. He’s not the only one with tricks up their sleeves. “Tell me about you. How long have you been here? And what’s your story?”

Daniel moves a fraction away. It takes him a second before answering, “I’d say it’s almost a week. I don’t know about the others, but I’m guessing we’re brought in here at different time intervals. I’m the 2nd diary user and you’re the 1st. If our numbers are anything to go by, I’d say it’s like a countdown till the last diary user enters the game. That would be you.”

“Does that make Penelope the 3rd to the last to enter the game?” David mumbles.

“Who?” Daniel tilts his head, assessing him. He was so near, he could feel his breath against his skin. David calms the thundering of his heart.

“The lady you killed. Did the murders take place before you got here?” David almost stuttered as he avoids any part of Daniel’s face that would make the other look at him funny. The blonde leans back and analyzes him for a second.

“Her second kill took place during the week I woke up. I already had my suspicions and knew she was playing the survival game too. I heard her first kill happened three days before I woke up. I’ve been trying to find other diary users but my search has been fruitless. Until you came along.” Daniel said. He slips his arm free, to David’s relief, but he lets it linger on the bench behind him.

 _Did our arrivals come weekly?_ If David was the last, what would happen the week after this? As if sensing his question, Daniel shrugged. “Maybe the god himself will come down here next time,”

“That doesn’t really make things any better,” David grumbles. Daniel nods in agreement. After thinking, the brunette inquires about the other’s life. What he’s been doing the week he got here and asked how he got through a whole week without getting tracked down by other diary users.

“Strange thing,” Daniel muttered. “I woke up and, do you remember what I told Gwen? I actually am in a religious group. But I wasn’t there by choice. It’s as if the god reprogrammed my head to be part of them and they... already knew who I was,”

David blinked, surprised at what he’s hearing. That was strange. “So it’s like, you were already part of this world?” He shook his head. “That can’t be. These people are constructed after all, for his sick game.”

“Yeah, sounds about right. It’s like he constructed my fellow brothers to already know and accept me,” he says with a faraway look. His next words break him out of his reverie, “isn’t that what happened to you too? That’s why you’re staying with... Gwen. Is she your _fake_ girlfriend?” the tone of his voice comes out harsh, a little too inquiring.

David squirms with the way he sneered at the words _fake girlfriend_. It clearly affected him, but he couldn’t tell how. Daniel’s arm rests against his back.

“Uh, no actually. I have no idea who she is and she and I met on the spot when I got lost in the woods,” then he brightens. “She was really kind. She didn’t know me and yet, she invited me to her place. I’m currently residing there and, well, that’s the best I got.” He chuckled nervously.

“You could always move in with me,” Daniel tilts his head, eyes narrowed. “I’m sure that’s a much better option for you.”

The redhead flinches. “E-excuse me?” he smiles uneasily. “I can’t just leave Gwen. She’s been so kind and considerate. To up and abandon her is horrible of me,” he frowns at the thought of leaving her after being so compassionate towards him.

The blonde leans on his elbow and blows out a breath in frustration. “Fine. But my home’s open to you whenever you feel like coming over,” the way he said it, it was like he was moping. David found it so opposing to the brash and bold manner he displayed minutes ago.

He nods in thanks. His lips pursed as he remembers something else. “Hold on a sec, you’ve met her. What made you think we were together when she was clearly...” he trails off and looks away. This was another awkward situation he wished he didn’t engage in. Why did he steer the conversation this way?

“Clearly?” Daniel reiterates. David can hear the smirk in his voice and his humiliation completely ate him up.

He clears his throat like he’s having a difficult time getting the words out. “She thinks we’re pining after each other,” he finishes it off.

“That was the intended effect, yes.” Daniel leans closer with a Cheshire-like grin. “I don’t want her coming after you. Besides, I think we’d make a good couple,” David chokes and forcibly chuckles. _How am I supposed to reply to something like that?_ He looks at Daniel as if he was joking. His grin stays in place and his blue eyes glint. David’s mouth drops when he finds that he isn’t.

“Daniel, we’ve only met—“

“Yet I feel like I know so much about you. Give it some time,” he pulls his arm away and stands up. He extends his hand out to him. “But trust me when I say you won’t get rid of me that easy,” David accepts his hand and the other man pulls him up. Daniel winks and he realizes his mistake as he falls for the bait.

“Our first date can’t end like this. I know a good cafe,” he tightens his fingers around his and doesn’t let go. Suddenly, David’s itching to get his hand on his phone. The knowledge that anything could happen while he was around Daniel and he can find out sooner prodded at him.

Before he could get to it, an explosion knocks him off balance. This sends him tumbling into Daniel and the other is quick to catch him. Frantic screams fill the air as other civilians run. He can see a few scattered dozen in their spots, frozen in fear.

“Daniel?” he looks up. The man was already searching the crowd. He lets go of him and retrieves his phone. David does the same. He knew playing this game wasn’t going to be easy. _Our next opponent must be in the area. Better keep an eye out._ He checks the time on his watch. 11:45 AM.

 

01

     **[11:45]** _An explosion goes off in a nearby building. People scatter and scream. I’m momentarily surrounded by chaos but Daniel protects me._

 **[11:47]** _The police are here, but I still hear crying. There are people under the rubble of the destruction. Who did this?_

**[11:50]** _She’s so fast. She’s managed to shoot three policemen down and avoided the bullets aimed at her. Something tells me to hide, to not let her see me._

“Come on!” Daniel holds onto him and pulls them towards the rubble. Towards the destruction.

“What are you doing?!” David screeches, looking at the people around them. They get bumped a few times but Daniel’s grip on him doesn’t slip.

“If we make it there, we might find our opponents,” he looks back momentarily as if this explained his actions. This only scared the brunette. He stops and tries to pull Daniel back.

“Isn’t that what we _don’t_ want to do? We should be far away from here,” David mutters, looking around in panic. Who knew what their diaries predicted at this moment. His eyes catch onto his phone and he sees entries popping up after the next.

 

01

**[11:51]** _She’s yelling loud enough for us to hear. She looks so young... I can’t believe she’s capable of blowing a building up. She’s saying she knows. Knows what?_

 **[11:53]** _Holy cow. She knows. The police have stopped coming after her. The explosion scared them. Who wouldn’t be? The area around her is a minefield._

He looks up and sees Daniel on his phone too. He exhales and tightens his grip on David. “You’ll be fine. We just need to get a look at her, then we’ll know who we’re dealing with,” he reasons. The brunette wants to shake his head and leave. He couldn’t possibly stay here. But... his thumb rubbed circles on his palm reassuringly.

He glances at his phone to make sure there was no DEAD END mark on him, and pockets it when he’s satisfied. “With our phones out like this, they might pick us off from the crowd easier,” he whispers to Daniel as he inspects his surroundings.

“I can’t _not_ check too. Your life may be on the line here. Our lives,” he whispers back and gives him a grim smile. “You have my back, I’ll have yours,” as if it was as simple as that. He squeezes his hand and turns back to the rubble like he’s watching a movie. David stares at his face. _God help me, this man is crazy_. David finds himself smiling.

And just on time as 11:47 hit, police were around the area. People have come together to help those who are injured. Some reporting they saw someone suspicious. As they sat and watch, David wanted to take his phone out and check his future diary. But he couldn’t, not without risking letting his opponents confirm he was a diary user. To his horror, Daniel ignores his warning and checks his phone. He stares baffled at him.

“If you keep staring like that, they’ll know something’s up. Watch the area for me,” the blonde mutters. David slips his hand free and shoves it in his pockets. He turns away from him in time to hide the burning on his face. Something tugs on him. Call it instinct, but he slips his hand around Daniel’s arm and leads him further outside the crowd.

“Is anything wrong?” he looks up from his phone.

“Standing in a packed bunch of people really isn’t a good idea when we’re playing a survival game. Anyone could slip in and stab us from the back and we won’t know,” David assesses and loosens a breath once he’s satisfied with their location.

Daniel smirks at him. “Smart,”

Before he could retort, gunshots rang out. His eyes follow the blur of movement as someone easily dodges them. Just like the diary said. He finds himself glues to the figure before it vanished. The sound of a megaphone catches his attention moments later. He gazes up the building next to the one that’s blown up and sees a lone girl standing there. _There’s no way that’s the same girl who dodged all those bullets._

He fears their location might give them away more and takes a step back. Daniel holds onto him firmly and lowers his mouth to his ear and says, “Watch out for anything suspicious. She can’t be the only one here.” His warning sends a stab of fear through him. David nods subtly. _Something about this situation seems off_. 

“Attention, people I don’t give a shit about,” her voice rang through the megaphone, distorting it and projecting her more obnoxious voice. “I’m looking for a very _special_ someone. Someones, more like it. He’s not here alone,” her shrill laugh echoes. The police are on their way to the next building when another explosion comes off.

David watches as a splatter of blood and body parts rain down on them. His breathing comes ragged as he closes his eyes. _This can’t actually be happening right now_. He counts as he takes in deep breaths. The terror in the air sends him reeling.

She tut-tutted. “I wouldn’t come close to me if I were you. It’s a minefield, you see. You’ll go boom!” She shouts into the megaphone, making David flinch. From the looks of it, some people were thrown off by this too. People were crying and some collapsed on their spots. After an awkward silence, she laughs haughtily into the megaphone.

“Diary users 1st and 2nd,” she announces, and it makes David’s blood run cold. From the distance, he can see the grin on her face as she says, “I know you’re here.”

A police officer tries to yell at her to come down, that she had no right to do what she’s doing. David couldn’t process anything as more explosions went off. So this is what his diary meant. _She knew_.

“Breathe, David,” Daniel’s reassuring voice comes to him, bringing him back to reality. “You’ll be fine. My diary says you’re unharmed,” Daniel’s hand squeezes him. He tries to focus on Daniel's voice.

“How about you?” he turns his head subtly without taking his eyes off the girl on the roof of the building. He feels Daniel’s chest connect with his back. He instantly goes lax against him like he’s the wall that holds him up.

“Me?” he whispers against his ear. “I’m flattered over your concern, but I’m sure I’ll be fine,” his breath tickles David’s ear. The brunette ignores the burning sensation in the nape of his neck. Instead, he’s glued to the scene before him. So many bodies littered the floor and nobody else dared make a move.

“Oh my god, have you any idea how long I’ve been here?!” She screams into the megaphone, looking around frantically at the crowd. David tenses but he steels himself. “This fucking phone didn’t activate until you came around. I’ve been here for months,” she cries.

 _She lasted months long without the help of her future diary?_ David couldn’t believe what he was hearing. _The anxiety in that long wait. It must've driven her insane._ He watches as she does a 360 inspecting the area. She still hasn’t found them.

“And when you arrived,” she took a deep breath, grin growing wide. “I realized why it waited so damn long for you to come. It wouldn’t be fair if I’m able to read everyone else’s future before the game truly started,” she says, looking down on them. David’s face contorted into confusion mingling with fear. _There’s no way..._

“When you came into this world, my diary blew up,” she said in mock astonishment. “I understood the power it held. How superior it is among others,” her voice was high on adrenaline. It's been approximately two days since he woke up. If her phone waited that long, there must be a reason why. The people below her murmured lowly. David caught snippets of words being said, some people claiming she was crazy or mentally ill.

Nobody knew about the game but the players.

They could be programmed right now to do the things they do. _The god must find sick pleasure in toying with us._ David almost growls in disgust. But as he concentrates on their mingled voices, he can’t deny the genuine fear he heard. Reality almost blurs with this world and it makes him nauseated for a second. He almost drops to his knees, but leans on Daniel for support. The other doesn’t protest. Maybe he’s just as transfixed with the events unfolding before him.

His skin prickles as he hears her next words.

“I toss a different shirt on and leave. Today, I’m walking to town,” she reads mockingly. David looks up and sees she’s got her phone out. His gaze zeroes in on the phone. _Her future diary_. Something about her entries sounds familiar.

“The 2nd diary user's already here. Has he been waiting for me?” She does a fake gasp. The crowd started to stare blankly at her, some looking around nervously. That’s when it hit David. She was reading _his_ diary entries. “You two must be getting cozy with each other. At this place, in our situation? What a joke!” She snorts and laughs haughtily.  

“Fuck,” he hears Daniel mutter from behind him. _Fuck indeed_ , David gulps down his rising fear.

“Oh, here’s a good one. He’s—“ she pauses, as if her entries changed. Did it reveal more of his entries? David quivers in place. Suddenly, the sound of a shotgun goes off, ringing in his ears. David sees the girl on the roof already dodging it. _She must’ve seen it coming_. That’s why she’s still standing and not on the floor bleeding out.

The shooter missed and David felt all the more scared.

“You bitch,” she gasped into the megaphone. She looks down at her phone.

But David’s gaze strays to another figure behind her. He watches in horror as the girl is picked up and thrown across the figure’s shoulders. The other person looked... feminine. Too lithe a build to be a guy’s. Another diary user? _They must be working together_.

“7th, you dare wage war on me?” the girl laughed even as she was on the other girl’s shoulders. “And here I thought we could team up and take down those who stand in our way. I guess not,” she sneers. The other figure raises an arm and throws something down. Smoke erupts and conceals both of them. People yell in outrage and David searches the roof for any sign of them.

As the smoke clears, the place where they once stood was now empty. They vanished.

“Son of a—“ Daniel inhaled and ran a frustrated hand through his hair. “This isn’t good. If she can read your entries, you’re not safe.” Daniel’s hands clamp down on his shoulders.

“And so are you,” David waves his hands off. “It can’t only be me on her future diary. The gunshot. She said something about the 7th. Maybe she read the 7th diary user’s entries and saw what they planned to do. Which means if her diary really _is_ powerful as she claims it to be, she probably has the ability to read through yours too,” David poked him in the chest. His words sink in and he feels cold dread once more.

“Which means,” Daniel repeats, narrowing his eyes. “You’re in big trouble.”

 

 


	3. Kill me twice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for the looooong wait. I actually finished writing it two weeks ago ish but I was called to do some work so I wasn't able to write the last few paragraphs. Ever since, I've been bombarded with school work so I wasn't able to progress with the last bit .__. BUT YEAH. Still am busy. Just found the one day where I get to sit back and do nothing.
> 
> Also, there's a character in this chapter I completely made up. He's mentioned before, in my other fic (Divided, We Fall). Just another side character who really isn't that important.

They left town just as the crowd started to disperse. The police practically swarmed the area, locating the mines placed and other hidden explosives. Civilians were escorted to safety and some were brought to the nearest clinic. The dead bodies that littered the scene were covered in sheets in respect. David slipped past the chaos and tugged Daniel to the direction of the forest. It wasn’t safe to talk with all these people around them. For all they know, the girl from the roof might be in the crowd waiting for David or Daniel to make a mistake. The chances of bumping into more of his opponents were high—now with the 7th diary user in the area too.

In the woods, David is able to tell whether they’re being followed or not. They resumed walking until they’re far from town and headed to Gwen’s cabin. But David doesn’t bring him there. Instead, he finds a clearing and sits him down. If he recalls, the cabin is just a few ways down, a bit to the left.

After the spectacle the other diary user showed, David might just start fearing every path he follows and every decision he makes. He’s being monitored by that girl—and going to Gwen’s house won’t be a smart move, if that were the case. He didn’t want to put her in danger. But at some point, he’ll have to tell her. She wasn’t safe with David anymore.

“Penny for your thoughts?” Daniel said after reclaiming his breath. David stretches and looks around the woods. Empty, just as he thought.

“You know just what I’m thinking,” David mutters. With Daniel’s future diary stalking him, it wasn’t just Daniel who knew everything about him, but the girl too. If that didn’t make him any more paranoid, he doesn’t know what will.

“Hey,” Daniel says, “it doesn’t look as bad as you think it is.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” David’s eyebrows come together. He spreads his arms out. “You’ve got a stalking diary that monitors me 24/7. I’ve got a diary that describes my surroundings. If she’s got a diary that can read ours, then I’m very much screwed.” He puts his head in his hands and groans. _Just a day after our first opponent tries to kill me. I thought it couldn’t get any worse, yet here I am!_ David rubs his eyes.

He hears footsteps walk toward him. Daniel puts his hands on his shoulders and steadies him. “I need you to calm down for this. Listen, what I’m going to say is important and I need you to take me seriously. Something caught my attention when she was reading her entries out loud.” Daniel says.

“What is it?” David raises his head, looking at him in hopes of seeking the answer to their problem.

“Her diary entries didn’t copy yours entirely. Our names are exchanged with our ranking in the game, which means she doesn’t know our real names. And—“ he holds his hand out. David gives him his phone without a second thought. He watches him scroll and stop.

“There,” he points at the entry.

 

01

 **[10:26]** _I toss a different shirt on and leave the cabin. Today, I’m walking to town. Nothing like the smell of nature in the morning as I stroll down memory lane. Except, I don’t have solid memories now, do I? The only memories I’ll have are of this game. And this world._

“I paid close attention to everything she said. Every word. And she missed out certain parts,” his finger glides across the screen and points to the first sentence. “She left out _the cabin_ and only said _I toss a different shirt on and leave_. “

“And?” David urged on.

“This is very important. Her future diary may imitate ours, but it doesn’t give her our exact location. I mean, what would be the point of the 3rd’s murder diary or mine if her diary exhibits the same features as ours? Surely, these diaries have its pros and cons as well as being unique from one another. She may be all-knowing, but her diary hides certain important information when it comes to the diary holder’s location or name.” Daniel points out. The brunette just stares like he’s listening to Sherlock solve the case. _Wow, he really is smart. Or maybe he’s just good at deducing things._

“Besides, if she can really see through our diaries, that would be a little unfair, don’t you think? What’s the point of a game when one of us has one super diary?” Daniel mumbles, handing the phone back to David.

“The guy who put us all in this game could be unfair. Maybe set loose one superior player and see if we can handle it. He’s probably watching us suffer right now for entertainment,” David grimaces, “before the game began, he said he’s already had his bet on someone,” David frowns as he tries to remember. He tries to recall his surroundings and the people he heard, but they all sounded murky, as if something prevented him from remembering their voices. It was only the figure on the throne whose voice was loud and clear. Or was he imagining the murkiness too now?

Daniel went quiet. David crosses his arms and uses his silence to talk. “Let’s backtrack a bit. So, what we know is that she’s been here for months. Me waking up activated her future diary. And that her diary can imitate ours—or at least, show entries that are ours. That’s based on our observations for now.” All he gets from the other is a slow nod.

“If the game were any more unfair, the phone would’ve activated the moment she set foot on this alternate world, giving her the upper hand. I guess we can be a little bit thankful for its long wait. Maybe that’s the downside in having an all-knowing diary—having to wait for everyone else,” he mumbles. The look on the blonde’s face didn’t sit right with him. It looked like he wanted to say something.

“Daniel?” he tilts his head to get in his line of sight.

The blonde looks up. “The god was talking to me. Back in that dark place or the meeting room, he turned to me and said he’s got his bet on me. Do you think it’s ‘cause I’m... _special?_ ” he can see a smile spread on his face as his eyes twinkled.

At first, he thinks it absurd. Then David blinks, doe-eyed. “That was... you?” _Did the god look into the future and know Daniel had a chance of coming out of this game alive? Or did he say it to mess with him?_ No, he couldn’t raise his hopes up just yet. It was likely the god said it to throw everyone else off.

Right now, their biggest problem is dealing with another opponent who can read their every movement—read all the other diary users’ movements. There was no time for what ifs.

 “This game is so messed up,” David puts his head in his hands. Everything else was so complicated. How he isn’t going insane yet is a miracle to him.

“Hey, I’m on your side. If anything, you should be happy he’s got his bets on me. There must be something I have that others don’t. Doesn’t that make you feel privileged to be allies with me?” the blonde nudges him, smiling. “We’re a force that can’t be stopped. Not even by little girls. We’re going to make it out of here alive.” Then he swivels around and walks further from the brunette.

The man stares after him for a while until Daniel halted.

“You coming?” Daniel asks over his shoulder.

“Where?”

“To Gwen’s cabin. We need to break the news to her,” he says matter-of-factly, “and we need to move you out.” David catches him wink before going exactly to the direction of his friend’s cabin.

“How do you know where she lives?” The question was lost in the wind as he began catching up to Daniel. David didn’t need to hear the blonde’s answer. In the back of his mind, he knows.

* * *

 

“Holy shit, so you weren’t on drugs, and you weren’t joking. Okay. Okay. But are you okay? Does anyone else know how to find you?” Gwen inquires after being told the short version of what happened to them. David leaned on the back of the couch while the blonde sat on it.

“No. But the girl we saw might come after me soon,” he looks down guiltily. “I don’t want you caught in the crossfire, Gwen. You live a peaceful life and I hope it stays that way,” David’s mind backtracks to the moment he was in the crowd. The thought that other people didn’t matter to him ‘cause the god was controlling them anyway came back to him in full force.

Was the god controlling her too? Did he watch from his throne and delight in their little human interactions? He almost runs out of the cabin but as his eyes meet Gwen’s, he could not deny just how genuine her concern looked. Virtual or not, she was still somehow human. And David can’t bring it in himself to do anything to hurt her.

“That’s why I have to go,” he looks down in shame. After everything she’s given him, this is how he repays her kindness. “I’m truly sorry. I don’t—“ he’s cut off as Gwen launches herself at him and gives him a hug.

He hugs her back after a moment, his surprise dwindling down. The god would be a cruel being to play with his emotions like this, pulling his heartstrings after the other. But at that moment, he almost didn’t care. Her hug was the most human thing he’s felt since coming to the alternate world.

“You better outlive all these fuckers in the game,” Gwen says as she pulls back. She gives him a tense smile and lets go. “It’s been fun these few days. You could always come over if you feel it’s safe,” she offers.

“Thank you so much, Gwen. As a person you’ve only met in a day, I think you’re the kindest and most thoughtful person out there,” he closes his hands around hers and smiles. “I’ll most definitely come back soon.”

Her smile becomes sly as she nods to Daniel seated on the couch. “You just met him yesterday and now he’s taking you home? My god, if that isn’t the biggest leap in dating history,” she shakes her head, chuckling.

“Gwen!” Despite her joking, he turns beet red.

“Come on, I’m allowed to make jokes. It might be the last I see you here chilling at my place,” she says, her mood matching the glum atmosphere moments ago. “I really hope I’m wrong,” she claps him on the shoulder. David hoped so too. He wished things were different. He wished Gwen was an actual person that he could bring to the real world—wherever that was.

“You’ll need your clothes. I think I’ve got a spare bag in here somewhere. My uncle probably won’t mind,” she shrugs, leaving him and Daniel in the living room as she digs around the cabin.

The brunette sighs as he watches her go. His attention diverts from the door to Daniel when he feels his head lean on his hand. “Stop worrying. She said so herself. You can visit whenever you like.” He drawls.

“I know,” David mumbles. But he really wasn’t sure. It wasn’t safe to visit her if it meant being tracked by that other diary user. If she ends up using Gwen as hostage, David will freak. He would never forgive himself. He tries to clear his head from the things that went down in a span of two days. The adventure and the people. It couldn’t be real, yet—

“Gwen?” he asks a moment later. She comes out with a bag and sees his clothes packed already. He nods in thanks as he retrieves it from her.

“S’up?”

“What was your uncle’s name? You never told me much about him,” David says as he shoulders the bag. He hears Daniel get up and come around the couch.

“I didn’t think you’d care. He doesn’t come here often so I figured you wouldn’t meet him. Cameron’s a bit of a pain in the ass, but,” she looks down, scrunching her face up. “Yeah, that’s all he is. No buts.” This elicits a laugh from him.

“You should let me drive you guys. If there are people after you, it’s not exactly safe to be walking around, is it?” Gwen says, leaning on the couch.

“You’d do that?” David looks at her in astonishment at the same time he hears Daniel mumble under his breath. He doesn’t look back at him.

“Yeah. Call it my last parting gift,” she grins and goes out the door. They trail behind her as she gets the car in gear.

A few moments later, all three of them are in the car in comfortable silence. Daniel sat in the back seat while David took shotgun. Friend privileges, he supposes. Aside from Daniel giving directions to his place, it’s been real quiet. He tries to initiate a conversation from time to time but even he can’t spur it on. The direness of their situation was thick in the air. It was really happening. His opponents were hunting him down and he’s leaving the only friend he’s met ever since coming to the game.

Gwen broke the silence by making a remark about protecting him at all cost and directing this to Daniel. Of course, the blonde doesn’t miss a beat when he smiles reassuringly at her and says something that makes David’s cheeks heat up. His embarrassment grew by the second and he felt the air suffocate him. He hides his reaction by burrowing his face into his phone.

 

01

**[12:00]** _I explain everything to Gwen and she takes it better than I expected. I’ll really miss her._

**[12:15]** _She drives me and Daniel to our destination. There’s a white building in the distance and it’s where I assume Daniel lives. I hope I get to see Gwen after all this is over._

**[12:17]** _This is where we part ways. I watch her drive away. Daniel wants to tour me around. There aren’t a lot of people here. Which is odd since it’s the afternoon and I’d expect a lot of people strolling about right now._

He pockets his phone and looks out the window. The blur of trees rush past as the car zooms out of the woods. It was 12:13 PM when he took a peak at his watch. David leans his head on the window and waits for the hands to hit 15. In the exact moment it does, he looks up and spots the white building immediately. Just like what the diary said. It looked detached from the other buildings and was almost a block away from all the other crowded stores.

“Do you think she’ll know I’m moving out?” David says suddenly. Gwen doesn’t take her eyes off the road but it’s Daniel who answers him.

“There’s only one way to find out. I doubt she’ll know which building to go to, but if it puts you at ease, we can wait outside and see if anyone comes by.”

“No, that is a stupid idea,” Gwen furrows her eyebrows. She glances briefly at the rear-view mirror. “And here I was entrusting you with David’s life. I think I should pull over.”

Daniel chuckles. “I wasn’t serious. But if it were the case, I wouldn’t let David come in harm’s way. Not even a fly would make it to his shoulder.” The way he said it chilled the brunette. He didn’t know whether to be relieved or scared.

He spies another entry on his phone.

 

01

     **[12:20]** _Daniel wasn’t lying when he said we’d wait around. Fortunately, nobody suspicious came over. I guess we’re safe. For now._

“Well then, Daniel, there’s no need to wait around anymore it seems.” David reached behind him for the other to see the entry. He hears him laugh then pockets the phone.

“What are future diaries for?” Daniel sighs.

As Gwen pulls over by the building, the blonde makes it out first before opening the door to David’s side. “You sure you’ll be okay?” Gwen turns in her seat to give him a stern look.

The brunette shoulders the bag Gwen gave him, “as okay as I’ll ever be.” Wind blows past him as he steps out of her car. Gwen waves one last time before reversing and driving away. The gravel seemed to go on as the vehicle reduced in size. Who knew how far he was from where he started? Again, he finds himself in a trance. If only it were as simple as that. Driving away from this madness. David wouldn’t have left that car if it could take him out of here.

“Since your diary saved us the trouble of waiting, I should tour you around my apartment. It isn’t a famous place to stay in so most of the time it’s quiet. Perfect for solitude and concentration. The lack of city noise will do wonders to your brain,” he says. Breaking out of his reverie, he finds the other scrolling through his phone.

“Anything interesting written down there?” David raises an eyebrow. _I’m right in front of him. What could he possibly be reading about—_

“Oh, yes. You are quite an interesting individual, David.” He says thoughtfully then turns and walks into the white building. David tries to decipher what he meant as he caught up to him. A lot of things have been going on between him and Daniel, but he can’t pinpoint what. They’re past the point of acquaintances, but... what were they?

He follows obediently and listens as Daniel gives him a short tour of the place. He memorizes the layout and the rooms. Most of the time, he can feel the other giving him strange looks. It wasn’t something you’d give a stranger you met in a day, but then again his friendship with Gwen had blossomed in a day as well. Maybe he shouldn’t be too harsh on the guy, despite him coming on too strong.

They take the elevator to the fourth floor where Daniel resided in. Upon exiting, David comes face to face with another man. “Oh, excuse me,” stepping back, the brunette is surprised to see him wear the exact outfit Daniel wore. His black hair was slicked back and his deep blue eyes accompanied a smooth tan face. David looks back and forth at the two white-clad men. As if sensing his alarm, Daniel puts a hand on his shoulder.

“Brother Nik! What a surprise to see you. I’ve been out this morning to get some fresh air and a bite to eat. Fortunately, I had a run in with an old... colleague of mine. David, this is Brother Nik. Brother Nik, this is David.” The man standing before them gives them a huge smile, one that looks suspiciously fake, and shakes David’s hand.

“It’s nice to meet you,” the man says, eyeing him. David greets him just as enthusiastically.

“What brings you here?” Daniel asks, tilting his head ever so slightly. If David looked hard enough, he was sure it wasn’t surprise on the Daniel’s face but annoyance. The other man clears his throat and brings his attention back to Daniel.

“I’m sorry to inconvenience you at this time, Brother Daniel. I came by to ask if you had any plans today?” the man hesitated and, for a second, meets David’s eyes, “The others were busy and I figured I’d come by to see you. It would be nice to spend some quality time together since we haven’t bonded much. Brother Michael said we should get to know each other more,” the side of his lip tilts up in a half smile.

Daniel smiles back, but it looked so practiced and different from the ones he’s been giving David that he almost doesn’t recognize his face. _His eyes look bored, his lips strained, but his posture looks convincing enough to be polite. He wasn’t like this when he was around me though._

David nearly clamps his mouth shut physically. What were these thoughts that started to enter his head? _Oh jeez, have I been staring too much? How inappropriate of me._ David takes out his phone and pretends he’s not listening in on their conversation. From his peripheral view, he could make out their figures.

“How thoughtful of you! Of course we should spend more time together, but alas, I’m quite occupied at the moment. I’m sorry to have you come all this way only to have you turned down,” he frowns, but replaces it with a smile in an instant. “But no sweat! I’ll let you know when my schedule’s all freed up. Wouldn’t want to miss an opportunity to bond with my fellow brothers now, would I?”

Brother Nik smiles at him, satisfied with his reply. David looks up as the two say their farewells and separate. Before he could move to Daniel’s side, the other man catches his eye. It’s broken before David could blink and soon the man’s past him and into the elevator.

As the doors closed him in the small box, he finds Daniel watching the elevator. The practiced smile on his face drops faster than a pin hitting the ground. “I’m sorry you had to see that. That was ridiculous and even I know better than to sneak around, waiting to ask someone out on a date,” he rolled his eyes and walked down the corridor. He digs in his pockets for the keys while David walks alongside him.

“W-what?” the brunette asks, confused with the sudden change of his personality. They pause at a door near the end of the hallway.

“It’s nothing to get worried about. Brother Nik has good intentions,” he puts the keys in and twists the knob. “Just not good excuses,” he mutters in a disconcerting voice.

When he opens the door, everything seems to have gone still. It wasn’t a room at the other side of the door—it was a yawning darkness. Daniel’s hand hovers in the air as he stares into it. Frozen in spot, David does the same. He’s sure the time on his watch says 12. David’s smart enough to know that it couldn’t possibly be this dark in the middle of the day.

Instantly, he feels the cold air wrap around him, so familiar, like the time he woke up and he thought he was stranded in the woods late at night. The earthy smell emanated from beyond the door.

Now he knows why it felt familiar.

“Is going in a bad idea?” With wide eyes, David searches for any sign of life in the inky darkness. It looked so empty yet he can feel something alive deep within it.

“I’d say yes, yes it’s a bad idea. But what lies beyond this door is the god who put us all in this cage. We still need answers. And he’s the only one who can give them.” Daniel replied solemnly. David’s hand lashes out to grab him when the other took a step forward.

“What are you doing?! You can’t go back in there!” David’s voice cracked in fear. Daniel eases his grip on his shirt and calmly holds his hand. With a smile, he takes a step back. And back. Back into the darkness until the white of his shirt becomes one with black. And tugs David towards his direction.

“Then come with me. There’s nothing to be afraid of if you have me here. You have my back, I’ll have yours, remember?” He could hear Daniel from the dark; could still feel his hand in the dark. His fingertips were the only visible part of him left. The brunette’s heart was pounding. It _scared_ him to go back but Daniel’s words were compelling him to move his feet. He couldn’t let the other go on alone.

He watches as the darkness swallowed his fingertips, down to his elbow as Daniel continued to move backwards. His fingers latch onto his hand, afraid of letting him go. David lets himself be dragged into the unknown.

He crosses the threshold and a wisp of air rushes past him like he’s entering another dimension. He could hear both his breathing and the beating of his heart as he entered the familiar void again. A replica of the woods, but darker and less real. The only thing that spurred him on is his interest in accompanying his ally and possibly making it out of here alive with him. The hand that wove around his was the only confirmation he needed. Solid and warm and—

He looks back at the threshold he entered and halts when he sees nothing there. The light to the outside world was gone and so was the door.

“Daniel,” he whimpers and faces forward, only to see the spotlight from what felt like days ago again. His hands feel cold now. He realizes he could flex his fingers and a cold fear envelopes him. Daniel wasn’t there anymore. But someone else was.

“Who are you?!” David yells, aware that his voice was like a hammer shattering the silence. He’s surprised when he gets a reaction from him. The looming figure turns to him in an elegant sweep. His skin prickles and the hairs on his arm stood. To be noticed by some higher being felt like he’s worth nothing more than an ant.

“I thought we established this before. I’m what you mortals call a god. But for the sake of names, I shall be called Zemuug.” He announces with a voice loud and mighty that reverberated throughout the room. David felt the urge to genuflect, but stopped himself before he could get down on one knee.

Wait. The sounds. They weren’t really in a forest, were they? If he could recall clearly, the spotlights came from up ahead. David looks up and sees the artificial lights shining down on the throne. Bright like the sun, but not real or warm enough. Daniel was right to call it a room. A meeting room, since this was where he heard the others.

“I see you’ve met each other already. Some, acquaintances. Some... something more,” the tone of his voice was suggestive.  With a snap of his fingers, lights came on that blinded the brunette. Rubbing his eyes, he lets himself adjust to the brightness. He gasps, seeing Daniel a few feet away from him shielding his eyes as well. Daniel must’ve seen him in his peripheral vision as he turns to his direction and his eyes go wide.

“Daniel?”

“David!”

His first reaction was to reach out. When he does, he feels a current run down from his fingertip until a shocking sensation rips through him. He’s knocked back. He hears the blonde call out to him faintly.

“Barriers. Don’t forget the barriers.” The grating sound that belonged to the god echoed. David gets on his feet after a moment. He looks around and realizes it wasn’t only Daniel that appeared. To the far right on his one o’clock, there stood a tall lady. Killer heels, skirt almost miniscule, and layers upon layers of makeup that didn’t hide the wrinkles at all. With a start, he recognizes her as the 3rd diary user.

“Why is she here?” David asks, looking at Daniel then at the god—or Zemuug.

His eyes land on two other people he hasn’t seen before. One boy in his teens, a ginger just like him. Pale face dotted with freckles and a big nose. He wore a fitted yellow shirt underneath his leather jacket.

The other one was much smaller, much thinner in comparison. Pale face and a bunch of curls on the top of his head. He wore a turtleneck that only emphasized his frame.

All three of them had something in common—they stood still as statues. They weren’t breathing at all. David could only arrive at the conclusion that these... were the opponents that died before he came in, with the exception of Penelope.

But hold on.

Movement caught his eye as he swivels around to find another person there. She too was in her teens and she had wild salmon hair flowing behind her. Her cheeks were painted with pink streaks, giving her a warrior vibe. The look in her eyes was feral and impatient. The way she tapped her foot only made her look brattier. When she spoke, a light went off at the top of his head.

“Who the fuck are these three losers? And why does one of them have the ugliest skirt I’ve ever seen? Lady, I think you should stick to sweatpants. Your wrinkles aren’t the only thing that’s saggy about you,”

David gapes at her, unbelieving that she was right there a few feet away from him. The girl on the building. If he saw her, did that mean she saw him too? He catches Daniel’s eye and sees him thinking hard.

“ _Ninth_ , you’re here too?” She exclaims. But the moment she said it, something blurred her first word out. A synthetic voice replaced the garbled word with _ninth_ , before clearing the fog and allowing her to speak.

“Uh, what the hell?” Another voice interrupted. David turned but he couldn’t find the source of the voice. Right, there were still others.

“What was that?” Someone else asked, a girl from the tone of her voice. David glances back at the girl he saw an hour ago. How come she wasn’t looking at him?

“Names are omitted. We can’t have your opponents knowing who you are by name. But if you’ve met your opponents, you should be able to see them right now. Although, this isn’t entirely reciprocated. If one of you finds out the other is a diary user without the other knowing, only you can see them,” Zemuug says. “I figured I’d reveal your identities as soon as you find your opponents and put a face to them. Once you have a clear connection with your opponents where both of you can see each other, names won’t be blurred out. I guess you could say I got tired of waiting,” he turns to the opponents frozen in their spots.

“And only when the third is released did the game start moving. I had to speed things up a bit. You’re all here and most of you have met the others. Well done on your part. But the game is still on and if you don’t find each other in the next,” he looks at his wrist as if there was a watch there, “thirty five days, all of you will be disqualified.”

A murmur goes around. Some outraged and some frightened. It made no sense. Why wait for months to put them in the same world, only to disqualify them? David couldn’t form words, overwhelmed with the new ultimatum. Simultaneous beeps resonated around the room. He checks his phone the same time Daniel pulls out his phone. The digits blinking up at him were bold red.

 

01

35 DAYS LEFT

 **[12:52]** _– time out –_

That last entry was something different. Perhaps it didn’t record anything while they were in the meeting room. The text displayed below his number looked ominous. He looks up and catches Daniel’s eye. He knows he’s got the same words written down on his phone.

“You can’t do this!” one of his opponents shrieked.

“If you needed a successor so much, why end us all in thirty days?” Daniel speaks up after pocketing his phone. “Everything hasn’t made sense so far and it still doesn’t. You’ve waited for a long time. Now, this?” he subtly shakes his head.

“He’s right. If you need one of us to win, there’s no way you’d kill us all.” Someone else speaks up.

The redhead keeps glancing back at the girl. Something about her expression unnerved him. Months. She’s been here for months. She’s already exposed herself to them. Isn’t she at least afraid? No, he couldn’t see that in her. Her eyes darted around, not exactly settling on someone. The only one her eyes kept darting back to is the space beside David. Ninth, as she said.

“Hmm, you’re correct. Let’s level up the stakes, shall we? If the numbers don’t decrease to my liking in thirty five days, I will pick my successor at random. Everyone else will vanish into existence. Until that day arrives, I bid you all good luck.” Zemuug raises his hand.

“Wait!” a child’s voice squeaked. The figure pauses and turns his head subtly.

“But what about the friends we’ve made? Will they vanish too?” the childlike innocence in that voice turns David into mush. He couldn’t be the only one disturbed that he included a child in the game. No one would have the heart to kill her!

A second passes where Zemuug considers the question. “Everything that I create remains in this world. You are not of this world. If you become my successor, you control everything. You _get_ everything. Don’t rely on those thirty days,” he seems to soften, “I want the best and the strongest out of all of you. Fight for it. I want the world to be in the hands of someone who could take care of it. I don’t have enough time left, so if those thirty days arrive and no one has exhibited qualities of a likely successor, I must pick at random.” The sudden change of condescending to reflective was evident in his voice.

David didn’t know what to feel. He was mad, sure, but scared too. Confused. He couldn’t fathom the thought of just vanishing into thin air.

“The first person who entered the world is the eleventh diary user. Then the tenth. That was approximately five and a half months ago. The reason for this is because the world you’re playing in is tailored to your life there. Each of you aren’t strangers in that world—otherwise, it’d be easier for you to find each other. No. Some of you have roles to play. It may come naturally to you since I linked it to your previous lives. I found what you’re all good in and what your interests are so this world could use that.  Albeit some of you have unusual interests,” his eyes unmistakably stray to Daniel, “I tried to weave my way around it.”

David couldn’t help eyeing Daniel from the side. He wondered what interests Daniel had in his previous life. _Previous lives. That’s what we’re calling it now_. Something heavy settled on him. This was their reality now whether they liked it or not.

“Use your skills. You’re all here for a reason. Due to the first diary user’s appearance, they were able to act and extinguish the third’s rampage. Penelope Priss is eliminated,” he motions to the lady in the skirt idly standing there. “Before her, she eliminated these two young lads you see before you. Fourth diary user, Neil. And eighth diary user, Nurf.  Choose your friends wisely and know how to use your future diaries to your advantage,” Zemuug announces.

“When are we going to see you again? Do you just pop up whenever you feel like it?” someone asks. Zemuug actually shrugs.

“You could call it that. Our meeting may be within this week or the next. As long as I’m seeing progress. Good luck, diary users.” With a wave of his hand, the darkness lifts. David’s head spins as he faints. The last he saw was Zemuug standing before them, hands—or were those claws?—raised above his head.

* * *

 

He comes to a late realization that he’s in a different room. It wasn’t the couch in Gwen’s cabin. The walls weren’t of wood too. They’re white cement, and the bed he laid on was so soft. David rolls on his side, forcing the small migraine away. He takes a breath, or two. His mind finally catches up to him, events flashing before his eyes in a split second.

The god—Zemuug. They’ve been visited by him, and they were given thirty five days to finish the game.

David lifts his watch to his face and groans. It’s already 6 PM. He’s been sleeping for hours. His hand instinctively reaches for his vest but the lump in his pocket is gone. His phone. Without missing a beat, he sits up and scans his surroundings. He snaps to the door when it opens and in walks Daniel. David zeroes in on his hand.

“What are you doing with my phone?” He demanded, voice a little scratchy from hours of rest. Daniel sits at the edge of his bed, eyes glued on the device. David waits patiently for the other to notice him.

“Just looking through. Looks like we all have a countdown on our phones.” He hands it back and David sighs in relief to feel the small device in his palm again. He holds it close to his chest.

“Thirty five days,” he whispered. With his palm against his chest, he could feel the beating of his heart. Racing just as the hands on the clock were. “How are we supposed to do anything in thirty five days?” the brunette looks up at Daniel, desperate and scared. His blue eyes soften when he meets his gaze.

“He wants us to play his game. Then we shall,” Daniel’s hands find the covers and fists it. “We can’t let him blindly pick who gets to live and who doesn’t. You and I have to get moving.” He said in a solemn voice. The brunette swallows the lump in his throat. The second of hesitation pushes Daniel to scoot closer.

“We can’t sit around and let the others come to us. We’ll have to do some work of our own,” he stands up from the bed and paces around the room. David watches him pace and stop, as if considering some things in his head, then resume pacing once again. He’s surprised when Daniel turns back to him a moment later and asks if he’d want anything to eat or drink.

“It’s been six hours and you haven’t had anything to eat,” he says when David declined.

David’s stomach betrays him as it growls loud enough for the other to hear. He blushes as Daniel smirks and exits the room, leaving the door slightly ajar.

With the absence of Daniel, he pulls out his phone and checks what Daniel had been looking at _. I was asleep. There couldn’t be anything here that—_

His eyes find the entries immediately.

 

01

35 DAYS LEFT

 **[13:00]** _Daniel picks me up from the floor and carries me into one of the rooms. I’m lax in his arms, unfortunately in deep sleep._

 **[13:05]** _He clears some of the papers off the bed. He tucks me in like a gentleman and takes my shoes off. His hand slips into my vest and plucks my phone out of the pocket._

**[14:36]** _Daniel’s been reading the entries on my future diary as I sleep. He’s taking awfully good care of my phone. Thank you, Daniel._

 **[14:58]** _Daniel falls asleep on the couch, phone in his hand. The apartment is silent save for our quiet breaths._

**[17:20]** _Daniel wakes up. He comes into my room to check on me but upon seeing me asleep, he retreats._

 **[18:35]** _I wake up like it’s my first hangover and my head pounds. I realize my environment’s changed and I’m not in Gwen’s cabin anymore. I panic, thinking my phone’s gone, but Daniel comes in right on time._

 **[18:39]** _He’s pacing. He walks out to prepare me food. Honestly could use a meal right now._

 **[18:44]** _I’m walking out this room. There’s a flier on the desk to my left. Looks interesting._

His eyes quickly follow the words on the screen. He’s astounded at how much his diary can write down even when he’s asleep. Even in the hands of another diary user. He turns it off and holds the phone for a while. Daniel has been really kind too. And to hear himself say thank you in his entries confirms that he’s grateful for him.

He smiles and gets off the bed. His shoes are right beside him, but he pushes them away and walks barefoot instead. He opens the door without making a noise and walks out. David turns to the left and finds the desk where the flier should be. He grabs it.

It displayed a stage and its actors in a gothic getup all lined up. The words COME SEE GOODPLAY AND CO. PERFORM THE GREATEST PLAY THE WORLD HAS EVER SEEN! In the center, one actor stood out completely among the rest. He had a bowl cut and was wearing a white polo. A tentative smile played on his lips but his gaze was fixed outside. He couldn’t be past eighteen! David thinks as he looks at the other actors and sees them in varying ages. Some young, some adults.

Below the actors displayed the title of their show. Goodplay’s Rendition of: Repo! The Genetic Opera.

 

01

35 DAYS LEFT

 **[18:48]** _I ask Daniel about the flier as he prepares food._

 **[18:49]** _He said he’ll take me to see the show._

David considers his phone. His finger taps on the side as he looks back to the flier. Preston Goodplay, huh? As he walks into the kitchen, hand raised where he held the flier, Daniel’s already waiting for him with arms crossed and his phone in the other hand.

“My religious group was talking about it and got handed a flier. This is Goodplay’s third show and I believe he’s been notorious for his, excuse the pun, good plays. And yes,” he turns back to grab the plate off the counter—the food he prepared for David—and set it on the dining table in between the utensils, “I’m taking you to see the show.” He smiles.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I AM GUILTY OF THINKING OF A RANDOM MUSICAL. I actually can't imagine Preston performing in Repo! Genetic Opera. BUT HEY it's his rendition lmao


	4. You only get what you grieve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, shit what's thiiis? An update! I'm finally back! School just ended for us and I've got so much time for myself now. After rereading a couple chapters, I decided to work on this. I'll try to update more frequently since I have all the free time in the world now omg. 
> 
> ALSO TRIGGER WARNING! Some mentions of rape later on. Hue. Hue. No, I will not hurt our baby David. He's too precious.
> 
> It's like 1 AM rn and I haven't exaaactly proofread everything. I just wanted to put some content out there ASAP for all you waiting readers. Omagahd I'm sorry for the long wait but srsly thank you for sticking around!

When David woke up that morning, he had the biggest fright of his life. Rolling over, he chokes on a scream as he comes face to face with Daniel.

“Have you been here since last night?” David reels in his hands, guilty of almost pushing the other off the bed.

“No,” he scoffs, “that would make me look like a stalker,” he laughs like he found it funny. David stares at him like he lost his head. As the other got up and left the room without another word, the brunette scrambled for his phone. Stretching a bit and rolling his shoulders, he gets up to grab his shirt while opening his future diary. On occasion, he’d sleep topless. He preferred to keep it on when he was in Gwen’s cabin due to respect for the other. And he was on the couch at the time.

Here he thought the guest room would provide him the privacy he needed. Grumbling, he puts the shirt over his head and ties the yellow bandana over his neck. He plops down on the bed and scrolls through his phone.

 

01

34 DAYS LEFT

 **[03:00]** _Just as I’m in deep slumber, the door opens and Daniel walks in. He pauses by my side and stares at me._

 **[03:05]** _He walks around the bed and occupies the space next to me. He falls asleep._

 **[09:40]** _I wake up mere inches away from Daniel. He finds it funny. He can’t hear the way my heart is running at top speed. Is this fright—or something else?_

David nearly throws his phone. He rubs his face and knows he’s all red like a tomato from the stunt Daniel pulled minutes ago.

“What the heck has he been doing for 5 minutes?” he peeks through his fingers to read the time on his diary entries. He’d been staring at him. For a solid 5 minutes. David should be scared. He was in the company of a lunatic! Who had no respect for privacy at all, yet...

“It’s not like he tried to harm me,” David mutters to himself as he gets back up and approaches a dresser. He looks at himself in the mirror and brushes the crusty bits in his eyes away. Combing his hair back with his fingers until the tangles are free, he fixes himself and rearranges the bandana around his neck.

“Yeah. Daniel didn’t hurt me. If anything, maybe he was just looking out for me.” Even in the quiet, he could hear the doubt in his own voice. It makes him swallow back his words.

He judges himself in the mirror, eyes narrowed. _Listen to yourself, David. You sound like you’re out of your mind. Just... cool down. Everything will turn out okay._ He smiles at his own motivation. As he walks out the door, he remembers something from yesterday. He and Daniel were going out to see Goodplay’s play together.

The smell of breakfast hit him as he walked further out. He acknowledges Daniel with a nod as he sits by the dining table, still a bit mad at him for scaring him like that. He was a bit mad—and a bit scared for his own safety. Daniel had gone in his room at 3 AM, and to what, sleep beside him? What kind of a madman was he?

As a plate slides in front of him, he looks up to see the other man smiling tentatively.

“Look, I’m sorry about a while ago. I know it’s not professional of me to suddenly up and invade your personal space while you were asleep. I don’t know what came over me,” the man crosses his arms insecurely and looks away. “Truly, how embarrassing of me to act that way around you. I hope you don’t find my company any more uncomfortable,” he sits on a chair opposite to David.

David purses his lips and after a while, softens. He couldn’t stay mad at him forever. “Apology accepted, Daniel. You just caught me off guard is all,” he chuckles, spooning the food on his plate into his mouth. “Next time, um, maybe warn me when you’re going to do those things,” as they eat, he can’t help but feel Daniel’s eyes on him, though every time he looked up from his food to confirm his intuition, he never caught his eyes.

Another thing dawned on him as he looked at the other man. The rest of the morning, he’d been deliberately ignoring him but after his apology, he now got a good look at him. From the other side of the table, David spoke up.

“You’re not wearing white,” he breaks the silence. Finally, he meets his gaze. Something like a chill went down his spine and he can’t explain why. Daniel arches an eyebrow, looks down at his shirt and huffs a laugh.

“A correct observation,” he smirks. Today, he was wearing a light blue t-shirt. It looked outstanding on him—even with just a simple shirt. David only ever saw him wear white that the splash of color stood out way too much. The light blue hue brought out the color of his eyes too. He wasn’t even aware he was staring until Daniel tilted his head.

“I have other colors too, you know,” he laughs, a beautiful sort of laugh that makes David want to hear it again. The brunette flushes in shame.

“I haven’t seen you wear anything but that white shirt. What else was I supposed to think?” David manages a small laugh of his own. He clears his throat nervously when the other gave him his full attention.

Daniel sets his utensils down and leans back on his chair. “Tell you what. For today, I’ll go out wearing a colored shirt. By now, people should be familiar with me by the way I dress. A little change won’t harm anybody,” he shrugs.

“Why do you wear white all the time?” David asks after chewing and swallowing his food.

Daniel waves a hand. “It’s what they require in our group. Always look presentable to the public, especially when my brothers and I are out together. But,” he twirls his fork in one hand, contemplating, “I guess I’ll break the rule once for you,” he winks and goes back to his plate. David had no reply, therefore settled with bowing his head to hide his face. How was he supposed to reply to anything the other said when it looked like he was flirting? Or was he just joking around?

Afterwards, the duo cleaned up and got together in the living room. David had the flier in his hand, rereading the details while Daniel wrote on a clipboard. There were two couches in the living room and they both sat opposite from one another. _Is he respecting my space for once?_ David couldn’t help thinking as he discretely studies the other a few feet away.

Daniel sat cross-legged, ankle on his leg, as he scribbled down on the board. They were both passing time until the show began. There was one show for 6 PM to 8 PM, and another at 9 PM to 11 PM. He puts the flier away and asks what the other was writing. Daniel sets the clipboard down on the coffee table before them and slides it to the brunette. There was a list of numbers down to eleven and some had names written beside them. David being the first, Daniel second, Penelope third, and so on.

“It’s good to keep track of our opponents, don’t you think? That way, we’ll know who else is missing,” Daniel says. “We’ve got Neil, the fourth user. And Nurf, the eighth.” David comes to a stop on the bottom of the list. He had written “roof girl”, “roof girl’s sidekick”, and “shotgun boy”. The sidekick was the ninth and the shotgun boy was seventh. David couldn’t suppress his smile.

“What cute names you gave them,” he chuckles and hands it back to Daniel. He hears the blonde huff in embarrassment. The way his face went pink almost made him coo.

“I couldn’t come up with better ones,” he said, eyes locked on the clipboard and refusing to look at David.

“That works too,” David shrugs, smiling. This might be the first time he’s elicited a reaction like that from Daniel. He calls it a win for him. He leans back on the couch with arms stretched over his head. Daniel looks up from the clipboard for a second and quickly diverts his attention from him.

The brunette raises an eyebrow. _Okay, now he’s just acting odd._ Where was all this shyness coming from? Not able to bear the uncomfortable silence, he stands up and goes back to his room to fetch his phone.

David managed to spend the rest of the day being productive; getting some laundry done with the help of Daniel, helping with cleaning and cooking, and so on. His future diary had been uneventful too, which means the girl from yesterday wouldn’t gain much info from him.

Daniel has grown comfortable with showing him his phone, like how David handed over his phone to him just as easily. Despite the unnerving way the phone talks about David as if he were more than a friend, he was able to find a pattern to his recent entries.

“The entries mold itself to what the diary user wants it to contain, right? That’s why it captures the way we speak or how we’d write down stuff if we were to write in a diary.” David says. They were both laying down on the couch, waiting for time to run by. He had Daniel’s phone in his hand and the other held his. Looking sideways, he makes eye contact with the other.

“That would make sense, yeah,” Daniel nods. With the knowledge that someone else could see and copy their entries, both David and Daniel’s future diaries started listing down lesser information on their whereabouts. It was so convenient and damn, David was just about to start kissing his phone.

“It’s pretty smart to start writing our entries like that,” Daniel comments, still scrolling through his phone. “And here I was, thinking our diaries had a mind of its own. Honestly, I’d never write that about you.”

“Yeah,” David looks at him but the other seemed busy with his phone. He suspects Daniel’s using his phone as a means to not look at him. There were so few entries on there that he only scrolled back and forth. The brunette didn’t comment on it and instead dug through his morning entries.

 

02

34 DAYS LEFT

 **[02:55]** _He’s sound asleep, breathing and unharmed. I better check on him, just in case._

 **[03:00]** _See? He’s fine. Nobody’s going to harm you. Not when I’m here._

 **[03:05]** _Breathing is normal. No dreams seem to be occurring. I can rest easy now. Good night, you sweet thing._

 **[09:30]** _In 10 minutes, David will wake up. I wonder what his reaction will be when he finds me here..._

 **[09:50]** _Uh oh, he isn’t in a good mood today. Daniel, you may have fucked up. Just cook him breakfast and apologize like the good boyfriend you are. We are together, are we not?_

Eyes going wide, David turns to Daniel. He’s surprised to see him watching him already. Before he could say anything, the blonde beats him to it. “No, that wasn’t what I was thinking that morning. I don’t know why it said that—and honestly, after all the other things it said about you, I’m not surprised. It’s like my phone’s taken a liking to you,” the corner of his lips turn up, a sort of shy one than his usual charming smiles.

“And you’re sure it’s the phone?” David counters, watching him carefully as the other laughs and hands David’s phone back to him. With reluctance, he hands Daniel’s back too. The other sees his hesitation and sits up.

“Why would I talk about you as if you were my long lost lover? This is the first time we’ve met. Sure, you’re cute, but that doesn’t add up to why my entries are all about you. I suppose you’re someone I have to protect at all costs, that’s why it shows me your future instead of mine,” he says as he rests his elbows on his knees. Leaning forward, he looks David straight in the eye.

“Maybe you’re meant to be the winner of this game. Maybe I’m meant to be used as some sort of pawn for you. If our destiny’s already written out for us, we might as well carry out their plans.” He brings his hands together, rubbing them in contemplation. “Of course, that’s just my hunch. I may be wrong and overthinking such things that are already right in front of us.” He pauses, looking down.

“Or maybe that’s what it’s implying. You are my future.” Getting up, he leaves the living room. David’s left to wonder what he possibly meant by it. Feeling all sorts of confused and flustered, he gets up and seeks Daniel out. _What he doesn’t know is how my diary talks about him like I’ve got a crush on him. I know how he feels, seeing all these crazy entries gushing about someone you barely know_. He takes one last look at his phone. One new entry pops up.

 

01

34 DAYS LEFT

     **[14:57]** _Daniel and I exchange phones. I feel no bad intentions, not with the way he’s been treating me lately. I feel like it’s safe to be around him, despite some... other things._

 **[15:10]** _Daniel gets up from the couch and walks to the room beside mine._

**[15:12]** _He’s been bipolar lately. I can feel it from the way he talks._

 _Well, that’s helpful_. David frowns as he tucks his phone back in the pocket of his jeans. He goes to the only other room in the apartment where the door’s open and finds Daniel looking through a shelf of books. David stares in awe at his collection.

“I didn’t know you liked books,” he comments from the doorway. The blonde smiles, his only way of acknowledging him. David walks into the room cautiously, leaving the door open. He doesn’t know if Daniel feels okay being trapped in the room with him—or being forced to talk to him. He stands behind him, reading a few titles off his shelves. They weren’t familiar to him and so he could not initiate a conversation about it.

David started to feel anxious. Why did he come here again? Seeing Daniel’s back to him only made him more nervous. Did he not want to talk to him?

He fidgets with his fingers, mouth opening and closing after trying to come up with words to say. Surprisingly, it’s Daniel who starts the conversation.

“Have you ever read Les Mis _é_ rables?” He says, hand steady on one book on the shelf. David shakes his head but remembers the other wasn’t looking, so he voices out his answer.

“It’s a good book,” the other says absentmindedly. “Historical fiction, about a revolution in France. But there’s this one character who stood out the most for me.” He says, caressing the spine and taking the book out of its place from the shelf. He flips to a random page, still ignoring David.

The brunette steps closer to him, curiosity getting the best of him. Fortunately, Daniel lowers the book for him to see. The pages were yellowed and the scent of old filled his nostrils.

“Marius Pontmercy was a handsome young lad. Caught the eyes of any woman, yet fell for a girl he saw once. He came to the Luxembourg Gardens everyday just to see her, even from afar.” His finger snakes downwards on the page where David could catch a glimpse of said character in the scene Daniel depicted. “He grew mad with her. Not mad in the way someone gets angry—he got obsessed. Followed her home to see where she lived.” As Daniel flips the pages, he lands again on another page.

“That’s concerning,” David commented, albeit to himself. Daniel chuckled at his response.

“You’d think the girl—Cosette was her name—would be a tad bit disturbed. Who wouldn’t be if your admirer thought you dropped a handkerchief and slept with it throughout the night?” Daniel kept flipping the pages. David stared at him, unbelieving.

“You’re serious?” he says. He gets another laugh in return.

“Hunger comes with love,” Daniel quotes as he hands him the book. “Goes to show how far someone’s willing to go for someone they admire. Sure, it crosses some boundaries but in the end, it didn’t really matter. Cosette loved him in the end.”

The brunette scans through the page and reads a few excerpts here and there. The part where Marius picked up the handkerchief and thought it was Cosette’s. How he savoured it and kissed it as if he were touching her. David was shocked to see it wasn’t hers at all—but the father’s who had let it fall from his pocket.

“And you like this sort of stuff?” David asks, putting the book back in its place. Daniel shook his head.

“The book can’t be judged by that one scene alone. Overall, it’s a really great book. Believe it or not, the main character is actually Cosette’s father, who spent most of his life in prison and progressing into a really compassionate individual.” He says. David stares at the side of his face as he went about explaining the book. He was getting to know the other simply by listening to him ramble. He unconsciously starts memorizing the structure of his face, down to his neck and shoulders.

When Daniel finally looks at him, his eyes snap back up. That’s when he became aware of what he just did moments ago. He was checking him out. The air in the room feels like it’s been sucked out when they made eye contact. David can’t deduce what his gut was telling him to do. Should he say something? Apologize? The only question in his mind was whether or not Daniel saw him.

As the blonde smiled, he started to exhale slowly. “We should get prepared. Better be there early,” he puts back another book he retrieved and turns to leave.

“Wait!” panicked, David reaches out to hold his arm. His heart rate spikes up at what he’s done. Even Daniel looks taken back.

“Um, thanks for this.” David smiles abashedly as he gestures to the shelf. “If it isn’t any trouble, can I... borrow some of your books sometime?” he said the first thing that was on his mind. If he was being honest, he wasn’t sure why he stopped Daniel from walking out the door. His hand still held onto the blonde’s arm.

As if loosening up, Daniel angles toward him. “Sure. What’s mine is yours,” with his free hand, he gestures all around him. “I’m glad I got you interested in my bookshelf. Feel free to explore if you wish.”

“Thank you,” David smiles. His breath hitched when Daniel’s eyes land on his hand. Surely, he should be letting go of his arm about now. Slowly, he unclasps and quells the butterflies in his stomach.

“I’ll let you go on ahead. Bathroom’s just in front of my room, left of here. Knock when you’re done.” Daniel nods and goes to lock himself in his room. David releases the breath he was holding and stares after him. What he did definitely set the other off. He grimaces, not liking the tension between them.

 _Why do you have to be like this?_ Was his last thought as he gathered a pair of clothes and went for a shower.

* * *

 

There was a small makeshift auditorium where the play will be held. It took them a cab to get there and the place wasn’t so much as packed. There were still vacant seats and they got lucky to sit near the front. Apparently, Preston Goodplay and his crew were like a community theatre group. They weren’t _famous_ famous but they were pretty known around the place. His shows didn’t cost much to encourage curious viewers to come by and that worked to his favor.

David sat with his hands in his lap. He often examined the sea of people, scared he’ll see a familiar face—or worse, see his opponent. Seriously, what was he thinking, coming to see a play where anyone could come in and eliminate him in the darkness? To make it worse, Daniel left him to go to the restroom.

He was alone and frequently glanced at his watch. It was 5:40 PM and Daniel wasn’t back yet. _He’s taking an awfully long time_ , the words keep repeating in his head.

David bit his lip, his gaze coming to rest in the rows of chairs in front of him. People were whispering and talking, some laughing. Repo! The Genetic Opera, huh? David hasn’t heard of anything like it. He wasn’t fond of musicals or plays. Judging from the attire the actors wore in the fliers, this was gonna be gothic.

Arms slither down his shoulders and David jumps in his seat. _This is it. I screwed up and my opponent found where I am. It’s game over for me._ He froze in those few seconds, thinking he was done for.

“You really should be more careful. Who knows who could sneak up on you like this?” a voice whispered against his ear. David’s whole face goes red when he turns around and recognizes the patch of blonde hair. His cheeks went aflame as he stares down at Daniel.

“You scared me!” he bats his hands away and huffs when the other man laughs. He pulls away from him and goes to sit beside David. He gets the answer to the questions he’s been asking himself when he spies the popcorn and the drinks the other held. He takes the can of soda offered to him and voices his thanks.

“I’m just saying, you gotta check your phone more often. But I guess you don’t have to, huh? With me around, you got yourself a bodyguard.” Daniel stretches out beside him. True to his words, he was wearing another light blue shirt with cargo shorts. It was a casual look but it was something new to him. Seeing the other wear only white wired his brain to only see him in white. This got David staring at him more.

“Surprise, surprise. I have other clothes,” Daniel snickers, aware of the brunette’s obvious staring.

“It’s just shocking to me, okay?” David relaxes and shifts in his seat. They had 10 more minutes before the show began. “It looks good on you.” He says, adding a smile when the other turned to him.

“Thanks,” Daniel smiled back. Something fluttered in David’s chest.

“So uh,” he cleared his throat, glad that the darkness hid the way his face burned, “you said you were supposed to come here with your group?” David fidgets with his cold can of soda, unsure where to place his hands.

“I didn’t say I was supposed to. Someone handed us a flier. I originally didn’t plan on coming but the others were. I’m not sure who went and who didn’t.” He lowers himself in his seat and scans his surroundings.

“Are you... hiding from them?” David suppresses his giggle at seeing the other act so childish.

“What? No,” Daniel furrows his eyebrows and tries sitting up a bit more. Then he rolls his eyes. “Oh, what’s the point. Maybe,” his lips are shy of being a grin.

David leans on his chair and tilts his head affectionately to the side. Something about Daniel just makes him smile like a goof. _Is this what you thought of him hours ago?_ He clears his thoughts away as he reaches over and plucks a popcorn off the paper bag in Daniel’s lap.

 _This is nice_ , he thinks.

The show started and both of them faced the stage. They started with warnings, that there may be gore, violence, and/or sexual content. Then the narration kicked in, introducing the audience to the world the play will take place in.

 There was an epidemic of organ failures that killed million, and chaos erupted. Then, there was GeneCo, a corporation who provided organ transplants. Surgery became a fashion statement.

The music blasted in the speakers, a sort of twisted and haunting melody. David got chills from listening. The stage was dark but he could see actors roaming about. They had patches of skin that looked disproportioned to their body, clothes dark and brooding. The narrator comes back on.

Zydrate, an addictive painkiller. Basically the century’s new drug.

As a man dressed in black comes on stage with a sack over his shoulder, the narrator introduces him as the grave robber—the man who sells zydrate for a cheaper price on the black market.

The sack hits the ground with a thump as the man throws it over. Untying it, he pulls out an injection and buries it deep within the sack. The narration takes over. He was extracting said fluid from the dead!

Blood drains from David’s face as he sits there and watches the whole thing. It was morbid yet, he couldn’t look away. The haunting music kept him entranced. He jolts out of his trance when Daniel’s hand wove around his.

“You okay?” He tilts his head and looks at him under his lashes. David blinks and smiles, glad to remember that he wasn’t alone.

“A little overwhelmed,” he admits, biting his lip. Daniel smirks, squeezes his hand and lets go. If he were being honest, he already missed the warmth of his grip.

He glances at Daniel from his peripheral view. His hand was tucked behind the popcorn bag, holding his phone. His eyes were glued to it for a second. After a while, he closes it and sets it aside.

“Anything wrong?” He leans against his shoulder and whispers. He was finding ways to stick close to him. Daniel didn’t move away.

“Not really,” the other man replies. They share in the popcorn as they watch the play unfold before them. The actors were very good and the makeup looked great too. They had stitches that indicted they underwent surgery. They played their parts well too. There were times where David had to look away since the sight of blood made him go weak.

The boy in the flier finally made an appearance as he was seen fleeing. Goodplay, he recalls his name. Preston Goodplay. He was a good actor, belching out his lines loud and clear. David’s skin prickles as the grave robber started singing. This goes on for quite a while and he was able to catch up with the plot, however confusing the back story between Shilo’s—the character Preston played as—mother, her ex, the GeneCo founder, and the husband, the Repo Man. 

During the intermission, David excused himself to go to the restroom. Keeping his phone close to him, he tried to avoid the crowd as much as possible. Fortunately, there were restrooms just about anywhere so the lines weren’t long. He took his time and when he’s got his privacy, he whipped out his phone and scrolled to the very bottom once he made sure nothing threatening was written in his earlier entries.

 

01

34 DAYS LEFT

     **[18:00]** _The play starts exactly on time. Everyone’s got their eyes on the stage, eager to watch. Even Daniel’s pretty interested._

 **[18:05]** _There’s something unnerving about the actors. They’re watching the crowd as we watch them. Under the darkness, they’ve got their eyes peeled. They’re being a bit too observant._

 **[18:17]** _Preston Goodplay comes out. He plays his part good—better than the other actors even._

 **[18:40]** _There goes that eerie feeling of being watched again. I look at Daniel but—of course I know more than to doubt him. He wasn’t looking at me so... who was? Earth to David, maybe you’re just being paranoid._

David knows he’s taking a long time in the urinal but he couldn’t help his surprise. Someone was watching them? He’s half thankful his future diary took note of things even he wasn’t aware of. It was more than an asset. It was a game changer.

After reading the entries, he was almost afraid of walking out the stall. But Daniel was still out there. He had to tell him. Finishing up with his business, he scanned the latest entries on his phone. Nothing else indicated the creepy feeling in his gut.

 

01

34 DAYS LEFT

     **[19:20]** _The intermission ends and the show comes back on. Daniel’s being a lot more alert. The play comes back to where it left off._

He exits the stall with the phone already deep within his pocket. David weaves through the tight bunch to find his way back. As he was walking, he could feel eyes on him. He couldn’t give himself away—if someone were looking at him. It could be the girl. If he looked back now, she’ll know he looked at his phone and was aware of someone watching. He had to act ignorant to that feeling.

Itching to get back, he quickened his pace. He apologized to the people he bumped on the way back but as soon as Daniel was in sight, he practically rushed to his side. With 5 minutes to spare before the show began, he plops down on his seat and snatches his arm. This surprises the other man.

“I may be wrong but my phone’s telling me some creepy stuff. The actors were watching us.  It stated that someone was watching me. It could be someone from the crowd or it could actually be the actors—I don’t know but when I left the restroom, I felt it this time.” He hadn’t considered the space he took up and was all but centimeters away from Daniel’s face. In fear of being overheard, he had squeezed himself into the remaining gap between them.

Daniel slides out his phone and hides it in between them.

“Did you catch anyone looking at you?” He asks, voice low. David shakes his head.

“I didn’t look back. Figured they were still keeping an eye out for their target and didn’t know who they were looking for. If I turned around, they might’ve found me. That’s assuming they haven’t found me yet,” he mutters the last part to himself but with their distance, Daniel heard every bit of it.

Daniel’s phone light up between them.

 

02

34 DAYS LEFT

     **[18:00]** _The show starts and the lights get impossibly dimmer. The narration boomed from the speakers like a God amongst us, accompanied by the loud thumping bass. This is gonna get interesting. I’m glad David’s here with me right now._

 **[18:07]** _David's getting a bit antsy. I suppose he's a bit overwhelmed with the gore. Maybe hold his hand? Classic movie trope._

 **[18:10]** _Blood_ does _make him antsy. I can see him wince without even looking at him. Such a precious thing._

 **[18:30]** _He's so engrossed. I could lean over right now and kiss him on the cheek and he probably won't notice. Probably._

 **[18:40]** _David does a quick glance at me but it's over before I could catch him._

 **[19:00]** _The show paused for the intermission. David excuses himself to go to the toilet. I watch him as he gets lost in the sea of people. Be back soon, Davey._

 **[19:15]** _David's hurrying back, more anxious than ever. What's important is that he's safe and sound once he arrives._

“It didn’t pick anything up that might harm you,” Daniel says, going through each entry one by one. David tries to quell his blushing but the words on the screen just have that effect on him. He focuses on the subject rather than the side comments the entries made.

“I don’t know, something about this place doesn’t feel right. If my phone says so, I should look out for any signs of suspicious activity,” David says, lowering in his seat as if he could hide from prying eyes. His bandana hid his face perfectly.  Daniel looks down at him, face illuminated by the phone screen between them.

“You don’t have to if your phone will do it for you. Plus, looking around while the show’s on will only make you more suspicious,” he says.

“True,” the brunette frowns. A voice interrupted them just as the lights started to go dim. It was the voice in the speakers.

“Attention, viewers. We will not be letting anyone exit the premises as the show is ongoing. This might disturb your fellow neighbors and we encourage you to sit back, relax, and enjoy the show. We hope you’ve had a delightful experience so far and now, on with the show!”

David tenses up the same time he feels Daniel hold onto his arm. “This definitely isn’t right,” Daniel mutters, turning his head subtly to look around him. David looks behind Daniel to inspect the crowd. Upon closer inspection, the exits have now been guarded by people. They weren’t there before.

“They have guards all over the place,” his voice is shaky as he whispers it in Daniel’s ear. The blonde slips his phone back into his pocket and takes a deep breath. David eases away from his side when he lets go of his arm.

Just as the dialogue kicks in and the actors on stage do their jobs, Daniel whispers back. “Keep doing what you’re doing. Act natural and don’t look suspicious. Keep your eyes on the stage. For all we know, this is routine for them and we’re being too paranoid. Just to be safe, don’t look anywhere else but the stage. Got it?”

As he says this, Daniel’s facing the stage without so much as a glance at him. David gulps. “Yeah,” his reply comes out as soft as air, he doubted the other heard it. And so with tense shoulders, David tries to appreciate the play. His senses told him to look around, find clues whether or not this was normal, but Daniel’s words were embedded into his head. His hand is itching to get his phone but even that he refuses to do.

They were being watched just as they were watching the play.

The play ends tragically with Shilo’s dad being shot and the evil manager of GeneCo dying as well. There was so much blood on stage that David felt his own drying up. With a comforting tug from Daniel, he’s able to keep his eyes on the performance. Before he knew it, the lights came back on and the performers all lined up and bowed. In his frightened state, David couldn’t focus on the second half of the play.

They were in danger and he had to get him and Daniel out of here.

So as Preston and his crew bowed once more and waved goodbye to the crowd, he and Daniel got up and turned their backs on the bloody stage.

 _Almost there_ , he thinks as he spots the exit. People were taking their time, chatting and discussing the play. He wanted them to move over so he could be freed from this tiny prison. David eyes the guard warily, averting his gaze when he thought the man faced him.

“All good so far,” Daniel muttered to his side. They were being herded by the crowd and David had that suspicious feeling come over him again. There weren’t this many people before. It was like being pulled in a current. His blood goes cold.

“Dani-“ his words are cut off as someone cuts in between them. And another. Within seconds, David is pulled far from the blonde.

“Daniel!” he shouts, looking frantically for the other. People knocked him sideways which got him turning dizzy. He couldn’t tell if he was still going the right way.

The chattering began to sound deafening. He panicked, utterly lost. With Daniel, he was safe. With Daniel, everything was okay. He gave into his desire of checking his phone to locate the other.

 

01

34 DAYS LEFT

     **[20:00]** _Finally, it ended! I feel like I could breathe now. It was a good play though._

 **[20:04]** _The guards are still there. We’re heading for the exit now. But... it seems like there are a lot more people than I thought. Did I underestimate the amount of people?_

 **[20:05]** _We’re separated! The push is too strong and I’m being tossed around. Definitely a lot more people than I thought!_

 **[20:07]** _Daniel’s by the exit, refusing to leave. He’s looking over the crowd. If I could just wave my hand, maybe he’ll see me!_

Looking up, his eyes scan the exits and sure enough, nearby, he spotted the familiar blonde hair. Relief surged through David.

“Daniel!” He raises his voice as he shouts the other’s name. He waves his arm above his head. He goes for him again and this time he catches his attention.

“David!” he hears from afar. What he doesn’t hear is the beep coming from his phone. Before the brunette could go any further, a hand latches onto his wrist and pulls him back violently. His own bandana goes around his mouth to muffle his screams. He loses sight of Daniel in mere seconds but overhead, he can hear him shouting louder.

He resists and tries to elbow the person holding him in the ribs. He feels them go down but before he could make a break for it, two more pairs of hands latch onto him. Nobody took notice of him at all!

The crowd’s a ploy to separate them, he realizes with dread. Another cloth is placed over his eyes and darkness consumes his vision.

* * *

 

When he comes to, his first thought is: _my mouth tastes like popcorn_.

As David sits up groaning, he gasps as he finds his hands bound behind him and his mouth gagged. His vision was dark but there was no cloth there anymore. He was sitting on a wooden surface. He tries to move but his body won’t coordinate with him. Every limb hurt like it’s been pulled and twisted.

 _I hope that’s not what happened_ , he swallows in fear. As he scrambles to get up, a spotlight shines on him. His wants to block the bright light but then he remembers it was tied behind his back.

His ears pick up the sound before he could register what it was. Clapping. David squints through the light and finds himself imprisoned behind bars. There was one man—no, a boy!—standing before him. He was outside the bars. He looks around and sees a room. It was designed with a small stage where David was. The bars surrounded him in all sides.

As he steps closer and eyes adjusting to the glare of the light, he’s glad the bandana around his mouth concealed his surprise. Standing before him was the lead—Preston Goodplay.

“That was dazzling!  A beautiful display of two lovers being wrenched apart. The emotion was so pure on both your faces. Ugh! How could I ever replicate such emotion?” He says, coming forward. “You’d make a good Juliet, if Juliet were a boy.”

David tries to speak up but the bandana only hindered him. Preston’s face contorts into ugly rage.

“Just take that shit off! If you want to speak up, learn to open your mouth. A true actor knows when to speak up loud and clear.” He says, looking at him disdainfully. David looks down, unsure what to do. His hands after all were tied up.

Preston releases a frustrated breath, motions him over and reaches through the bars. He pulls the cloth down violently.

“There, you’re welcome.” He says, immediately pulling his hand away.

David wets his lip. “Why am I here?” he asks, looking around.

“That couldn’t be any more obvious, can it? Why, you’re our main character! You're the star of our show!” He emphasizes with both arms up. The brunette only stares at him nervously, not knowing what to say. A second later, Preston’s arms flop down.

“Or maybe I’m the star and you’re one of the ten antagonists. Ring a bell yet?” He says in a sing song voice. David’s eyes widen at the implication. Preston walks around the room and David’s eyes follow him. As he does, he’s able to see further out in the room. They weren’t alone.

There behind him were the actors of the play he watched. All of them. Some even wore casual—so out of place from their attires. Some were the people he knocked into when he was about to leave. God, how many of them were on Preston’s side?

“So w-why’d you bring me in here?” His voice cracks, unsure what to say at all. He figured communicating would postpone his demise for now.

Preston Goodplay scoffs like he couldn’t believe him. “Are you dense? You didn’t even try and act like you didn’t know what I was talking about! You could’ve gotten away with it,” he says. He crosses his arms and assess David like a specimen. “I was kidding. I’d know right away if you acted so. It would’ve been fun if you did though. It passes time,” he shrugs, walking back in front of him.

“Please let me go,” David lowers his head, lips trembling. It was futile and he knew it.

“Awww, look at you! Playing the part of a victim. More tears would be perfect, more but just enough. Yes, there we go!” Preston says from behind the bars. David tries to stop his tears from falling but the hopelessness of his situation only pushed him further. To hear Preston mocking him brought him down a peg or four.

“L-let me go,” he tries again, walking up to the bars. He jumps as something hits the metal bars.

“Distance. Observe it. A true actor knows how far they need to walk in stage in order to gain the audience’s attention. Too much and you'll be hovering over the edge. Nobody likes an actor who can't respect their space.” He bangs the metal stick again against the metal bars. David steps back, assessing the boy and the crowd behind him with scared eyes.

“Perfect,” Preston throws the stick to the side.

“Goodplay, sir, don’t you think we’re wasting time here?” one of the men from behind him spoke up. David got front row seats to see the boy’s face change from a sick, appreciative smile for David’s obedience to eyes narrowed and lips curling back like a rabid dog. He swirls—practically with grace even with his threatening aura—on his spot and points at the man who spoke up.

“What did you say?” With his back turned, David couldn’t see his face but the deadly soft voice he heard couldn’t possibly accompany the face he made a while ago.

The man was a stuttering mess and all the other people seemed to bow down. With one curl of his finger, Preston summons the man up front. David watched with sick fascination as Preston pulled the man down until he was kneeling before him, head almost touching the ground.

“Now, kindly repeat what you said moments ago. If I recall, you were ordering me to hurry up.” Preston says, voice soft like an angel’s. He couldn’t fathom why such a child could bring out this reaction in people. The man on the floor was sniffling. He was apologizing.

“Shut up, that’s not what I was asking for!” Preston says. With a tilt of his head, David saw his foot placed on top of the man’s head.

He kept pleading. The words were incoherent that David wasn’t sure what he was pleading _for_. "Oh, for crying out loud," eventually, Preston eased up and pushes him back, watching the man stand up hastily and move back into position. Preston's attention goes back to David, smile plastered on his face like nothing happened  at all.

“I’m terribly sorry for that! My, how out of character for me. Allow me to introduce myself. I’m Preston Goodplay, the 6th diary user,” he walks over to the bars and stretches his hand out mockingly. He looks at him like he expects him to shake it.

 _Surely, this is a joke_. But after a few seconds of silence, David only met the boy’s eyes. There was a different kind of madness in there. Did all the other opponents lose their mind like this? He felt sympathy for the boy.

He sighs, giving up. “I’m David, the 1st.”

Preston pulls his hand back out and claps excitedly like a little kid. “Ooh, the infamous first! Did you hear that, everyone? Our antagonist has a name! Not as catchy as I’d expect it to be but David works just as fine.”

The brunette pursed his lips, holding back a whimper. His entire being was burning with shame. Being humiliated like this in front of so many people... He couldn’t imagine what this boy was capable of.

“Let me go-“

“Before I start our little game, I want to ask you something,” Preston bends down, interrupting him. David couldn’t muster a glare as the other boy looks down upon him. His imploring ceased when he sees a wicked smile on his face.

“Have you ever been with a man?” Preston looks in the distance, as if reliving an old memory. The question makes his face burn up.

“E-excuse me?” David stutters, not sure if he heard him right.

“A man, David. Have you ever been _touched_ by one?” His voice takes on a dangerous tone as he stands up. “Before I commence this game, I should let you know what diary I have. It’s the most amazing future diary ever! It records everything my dear followers see. That’s how I found you, my dear David. And over the month, I’ve gathered myself quite a bunch. They’re soooo royal to me, aren’t you?” Twisting his head to the side, he looks at the crowd.

“Yes, sir!” They reply in cold unison. David steps back, unnerved by their response.

Preston sighs, hand resting on the bars as he looks away once more. “What I did to get so many followers. I know with just a few of them, I was a weak player for the game. I had to bribe others, use myself to get this number of people. And did it work out? Fuck yeah!” He yells, startling the brunette.

“But I’ve sacrificed so much in just a month. I’m worthy of that throne, David. And you can’t steal it from me.” Preston growls, white-knuckled hands gripping the bars. “I have 58 men in this room, counting the ones near your age. Not even a quarter of them are homosexual, but I can command them just as I please.” Preston splays a hand out and with a wave, the men stand up. David’s eyes widen with horror.

“What are you doing?” He chokes out. His hands are trying to work their way out of the cloth binding him from behind but it was bound tight enough to cut off circulation. If only he could get his phone. If only he had some sort of way out of this. All feelings of pity he felt for Preston vanished as it was replaced by cold crawling fear for his own life. This may be the end of him.

“Doing what a worthy winner should do. I sacrificed myself just to get the position I’m in now. Winners don’t pity others. And as someone worthy of that godly throne, I’ll eliminate you the worst way possible.” His eyes narrow, smirk widening. “You’ll feel the pain of what I went through. 58 men, oh my. Death by rape sounds like the perfect torture.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M SORRY DAVID. God, that was a rollercoaster to write. Preston's scary as hell and that was some deep shit.


	5. Some princes don't become kings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ayeee back with another chapter wHOT. I was orignally supposed to make this into a longer chapter but I figured that's an okay way to end it for now. Can't jam all the stuff into this one... small... chapter. 
> 
> I won't entireeely be following the events that happened in the anime, Future Diary. That's a whole other frickin mess I don't wanna deal with. SO no paradox stuff, no traveling to another universe to kill the original player, and no... um.. well, you get the point. 
> 
> Also thank you so much for still sticking around for this story ;;; I know it's kind of a mess but I'm trying to make it as good as possible. Your kudos give me life <33 And the comments more so.

David watches them with wide, fearful eyes as they start to line up. He’s like a trapped animal being surrounded by predators. Falling back, he looks around for any sort of weapon or a place to escape. He backs against the wall. Nothing at all. _Kick them with all you’ve got. That’s all you’ve got_.

“Oh, dear David, _do_ look here!” Preston’s voice wafts in the air. David grits his teeth, still trying to free his hands. His wrists were hurting, no doubt red from the burn, but it didn’t matter. He needed to fight in any way he can.

“I said, David!” Preston shrieks. The brunette spares him a glance.

The boy was waving his arm, holding something. His eyes squint and he realizes it was a camcorder.

“Great! Finally. I don’t want to miss out on this. If you mind?” He motions to the camera in his hand. David’s insides churn. He wasn’t able to voice out his opinion as the other continued talking over him.

“That reminds me! Didn’t you have a friend come over here with you? Let’s not keep him waiting, shall we?” Preston says. _Daniel_. His mind starts to go blank. _He’s here_. He watches as Preston cups the camera in both his hands and presses a button. His grin grows impossibly wider. He points the camera at himself.

“Hi! Hello! You must be David’s friend! I wouldn’t want for you to miss the show. I decided I’m merciful like that. Surely the wait has been _killing_ you,” he laughs giddily. He halts abruptly and turns the camera around.

“David, say hi to your friend!” Preston calls over his shoulder. The brunette looks at the camera. If Daniel was really seeing this, what did he think of it? David gulps. He looks helplessly at the camera.

“Daniel, I’m sorry I got us pulled into this mess! I-I’m so sorry,” his throat clogs up as tears obscure his vision. He couldn’t fathom whatever horrors they were doing to Daniel. Preston aims the camera at him then at the line of men that formed.

“Daniel, is it? I’m sure you know perfectly well why I’m doing this. Need I explain the actions of a fellow diary user?” he chuckles then pauses as another emotion crosses his face. “The throne is mine,” he sneers the last bit to the camera. He talks to it as if sharing a valuable secret and turns his back on David. Whatever he was saying to Daniel might only rile the other up.

As he was preoccupied, David’s hand reaches for his side and slips a hand down his pocket. His arm and shoulder ached in his position but he had to see his diary entries; had to know what were to happen, and if he had any chances of escaping at all.

He glances nervously at Preston who was still sneering at the camera. He couldn’t make out the words he was whispering but he assumed they were threats against Daniel. David suppressed his cry of triumph as he successfully takes a hold of his phone. _Do I even want to know what’s in store for me?_ He hesitates, scared for his future. As he eyes Preston, he figures he’d rather know than not. He opens it immediately and was greeted by the block letters at the end of his entries.

 

01

34 DAYS LEFT

     **[20:41]** _I wake up gagged and bound. Preston, the 6 th diary user stands before me with his army of followers. _

     **[20:49]** _A line starts to form. Preston said he’s ordering 58 men to... sexually abuse me. This can’t be happening._

     **[20:51]** _Preston brings out a camera to record my demise. From another room down the hall, Daniel’s watching. He’s thrashing in his own binds as he glares at the TV screen._

     **[20:56]** _They start coming in one by one. They fill my prison until I’m surrounded... There’s nowhere to go. Preston’s holding the camera out to record everything. Daniel, help me..._

     **[20:59]** _I manage to kick them, but they’re stronger than they look. They held me down roughly. I am helpless as they try to strip me. What comes after is a terrible, painful experience._

**[21:15]** _I am numb. There’s liquid everywhere and I can only assume it’s my own blood. I don’t want to open my eyes. I feel myself slipping away but every thrust brings me painfully back to the present. I don’t want to be awake for this._

**DEAD END**

His entire being freezes over like ice. He couldn’t describe the amount of fear he felt for what’s about to go down. What _might_ go down if he didn’t do something about it. _Think, David. Think!_ He had five minutes before they unlock the gate and come in.

Another survey around the room and dread settles at the pit of his stomach. It was him against them. _There’s no way..._ David fights to keep his hand steady as he watches the people gather behind the metal bars. Preston was still talking to the camera. At one point, his hand lets go of the cam to bring something else out. A silver little device rested atop his palm. His future diary.

“Three of my followers are with him right now. They’ll make sure he stays put and I’ll know if he tries anything funny,” he directed at the brunette. “My diary entries state what my followers see. With that being said, I have eyes all over the place,” he waves the device in his hand tauntingly. He starts announcing his diary entries .

“2nd diary user squirms in place. Managed to head-butt one of the captors. Putting up a fight but when the monitor lit up, he sagged like all life went out of him.” He states loudly enough for him to hear. He laughs. “Screaming, he demands David to be freed. My other followers grow agitated with his restlessness.” Preston scoffs and pockets his phone.

“My, we’ve got a feisty one. But you see, we’re meant to kill each other! Here, I’ve got over 50 men to do the job for me. When they’re done using him, you’re next,” he directs his words to the camera with a wink. “Or better yet, why don’t you join us? Join me? You could be my right hand man. My... Alexander Hamilton?” He cackles.

 _There’s no way Daniel will side with him._ David bites his lip, attention going back and forth between the camera and the men in front of him. For some reason, it was Preston prolonging the inevitable. _Let him keep talking_ , he thinks.

“I was only joking. Winners don’t share the prize,” Preston slams the camera down on the table. From his pocket he pulls out a pair of keys—keys to his prison, he guesses. He swirls it in one finger as he asses David one last time.

“You know, if things were different, I could’ve hired you to be one of my performers. You’d truly look good as Juliet, all frightened like that. But alas, I’ll go for the next best thing,” he motions to the camera. “ _’The Tragic Death by a Thousand Men, Starring Julio’_. Get it? Juliet, as a boy? This was pretty on-the-spot and we weren’t prepared for a dress rehearsal so Juliet’s gonna get a little modern here. I know, I know, a thousand seem to be a little exaggerated but no worries. We can always put the video on loop,” Preston laughs at his own sick joke.

Bile rises in David’s throat. In no universe would it be acceptable for people to joke about something so abusive and traumatic. But Preston, this young boy who looks like he’s got his childhood wrenched from him way too early, was laughing about it so easily like human life meant absolutely nothing to him.

David dry heaves on the floor, utterly sick. He can hear Preston’s laugh echo in his ears, a monstrous melody. Hours ago, he was watching him from afar playing the role of an innocent character in the play. When he sung, he sounded soft and so fragile. To hear him laugh this awfully was a complete 180° from the Preston he saw on stage.

He’s brought back to reality when he hears a static noise emit from his phone. At the same time, a small beep rings from Preston’s own phone. Both diary users check their future diaries.

David gasps, seeing the entries change completely. His throat clogs up—from happiness or from fright, he doesn’t know.

 

01

34 DAYS LEFT

     **[20:51]** _Preston brings out a camera to record my demise. From another room down the hall, Daniel’s watching. He’s thrashing in his own binds as he glares at the TV screen._

 **[20:53]** _Three dead bodies occupy the room Daniel was in seconds ago. One suffered from a blunt force trauma to the head. One was stabbed in the chest, while the other was stabbed in the neck. None of them were Daniel._

 **[20:54]** _Preston finds out he's got the DEAD END mark just as four more of Preston's followers who guarded our room hit the ground with bullets through their foreheads. Not a bullet missed its mark. Daniel's coming for me. And he is furious._

 **[20:56]** _Daniel storms into the room and guns down those closest to him without a second glance. About 10 or so people fall in mere seconds. He's a monster. His whole being is fueled by the desire to kill. Is this... all for me?_

Everyone in the room looks up when they hear people outside shouting. David’s dread started to ease as he stares at the door in anticipation. Behind that door was Daniel. From his spot, he could see Preston sweating buckets. He could see his confidence dwindling down as he motions his other followers forward.

“Bring out your weapons. This may get a little messy. Trouble’s greeting us at the front door and we gotta be ready,” he orders, eyes anxiously following the words on his phone. David sits there with hands tied, wondering what Daniel’s doing outside.

He struggles to free his hands yet again. Still, no such luck. His head snaps up just as four gunshots ring in succession. The shouting behind the door cease entirely. It’s quiet. Even Preston’s followers are at a loss with what to do. The boy holding his phone motions angrily to the followers.

“What are you standing around for? Fucking get out there—“

A loud blast permeates the air as the doors are knocked down. David doesn’t have enough time to look up before the gunshots started. Before Preston’s followers could move, true to the diary’s words, 10 of them fall to the floor. He wants to get a look at his friend. He comes up to the bars but what he sees frightens him.

Daniel was a bloody mess.

He was worried that the copious amount of blood belonged to the blonde. But he sincerely doubted that as the man aims with two guns, successfully putting a bullet through each head in his way. Some bullets that go astray don’t go to waste as they hit others behind the target.

“There are eighty of you! What are you doing standing around?” Preston shrieks. The men who were formerly in line now scatter to attack the destructive man. It was one to eighty. He was outnumbered greatly yet... they were going down faster and faster. And Daniel was still standing.

Daniel catches David’s eye for a split second, pupils blown wide. He could read his lips as the blonde mouths his name. Something prickles the back of his neck. Daniel zeroes in on his direction leaving death in his wake.

An entry pops up on his phone. This time, David has no doubt for the outcome of a once hopeless situation.

 

01

34 DAYS LEFT

     **[21:10]** _Preston has nowhere to go. All his followers are dead. This time, it’s him pleading for his life. He offers the key to Daniel._

 **[21:13]** _Daniel turns around and stabs the key into Preston’s neck. Preston vanishes, just like that._

He phone almost slips from his fingers. A turn of tides has occurred miraculously! Putting the device back where it’s safe, David couldn’t help but watch the carnage unfolding right before his eyes. He watches his hero come for him—no, he wasn’t a hero. The disregard for human life as he came for David wasn’t something heroic. A villain suited him more, if a villain were to save their love interest.

All of Preston’s  followers closed in on Daniel. There was a second where it looked like they swallowed him up as he vanished from sight. But a cry rings out as he dodges the bullets being aimed at him. He acts quickly, on impulse, as he uses them as human shields. Not one bullet grazed him.

 David couldn’t keep his eyes away from him, awed.  The ones shooting didn’t even know whether to put down the gun or keep shooting at the moving target as it only came to their disadvantage.

They almost pin him down but the strength of two men was outmatched as he flips, unleashes a blade upon them and slices their throats open. Daniel repeats this until he knocks one of the gunmen down and uses their weapon against them.

The air began to smell like sulfur. Blood coated the floor and even the wall had splatters of blood. It was living hell. The brunette didn’t want to look away, scared that Daniel will be lost to him forever.

To think that hours ago, he couldn’t stand the sight of blood—even looked away as fake blood sprayed the stage during the play. This was the real deal. He shouldn’t be able to stand the sight of it. The odor was too strong to ignore and he was glued to it like he was watching an action movie play out. He knew one thing for sure; to be at the receiving end of that blade would mean certain death.

Each life in the room was slaughtered without a second thought, each follower Preston ever gained in his one whole month of being here. David looks at the boy shaking on the spot. He had nothing to use against him but his phone. Daniel stalked closer and behind him were Preston’s fallen men. Said boy was consulting his phone, possibly hoping there was a way he could dodge death.

From his angle, David could see how the dead end mark stood out ominously. It wasn’t going to change for the 6th diary user.

“Stop it! They don’t deserve this, okay? They’re followers who only move on my orders. Stop! Please!” Preston cries out with a scratchy voice.

At once the remaining followers lowered their weapons and looked back at their leader perplexed. There weren’t even a handful of them left. Daniel doesn’t lower the gun and the blade.

“Why spare anyone when all you intended to do was hurt David?” He says. He lowers the hand carrying the blade to wipe the strip of blood on his face. David hoped he wasn’t wounded but his body was covered with the red fluid.

“What was I supposed to do? We’re all players in his game! Surviving is what we’re supposed to do! I’ll release him if you want him so badly,” Preston holds his hands up, surrendering. “Please, just leave me and them alone.” He sobs.

The change from his dark demeanor surprised the brunette. In fact, he could’ve fallen for it, if he didn’t see how quickly Preston masked his real emotions minutes ago. He was an actor, after all. _But what if I’m wrong? Does he regret putting us in this position if it meant the lives of his followers?_

Daniel flicks the blood off his fingertips like it disgusted him. “Winners don’t share,” Daniel smiles, teeth flashing. Faster than he could blink, the knife sings in the air and lands its mark on the man right in front of Preston. _Thunk,_ it went straight through his head. Just as everyone’s focused on the knife, Daniel wasted no time in shooting them square in the chest. Down the six others went.

David scrambles to the bars as Daniel walk with slow careful steps toward them. He was the devil in that moment. His squared shoulders and wicked gait could make anyone tremble. Unfortunately for him, Preston was at the receiving end of his deadly gaze. David now understands what a true predator is like.

As he reaches them, the blonde bends down to wrench his blade away from the man’s head. Blood sprays on him but he doesn’t even care to notice.

“Take the keys. I won’t hurt him anymore. Just leave me alone, please.” Preston says, fumbling with the ring of keys. He hands it to the man and leaves his hands in the air.

David couldn’t resist surveying the room behind him. He could see every inch coated in nothing but death. In mere minutes, Daniel slaughtered eighty people. He goes weak with fear—repulsion, and awe for him.

Daniel takes the keys from Preston. He makes a move to walk past him, but pauses. “Just because you let yourself be taken advantage of doesn’t excuse you from doing it to others. It only makes you more of a monster,” his eyes narrow. “You’re not worthy of a throne, much less godhood,” Daniel scowls.

Preston isn’t given the chance to turn around as the key’s pointed end sinks into his neck. Preston gasps.

“You picked the wrong player to torture. Because of your stupidity, death is your only salvation,” with grunting force, Daniel jams it in until the entire thing is covered in blood. He was practically bathing in it today. If that wasn’t enough, he puts him in a choking hold and lifts the boy up, further pressing the object into his throat.

“May Zemuug find you a better resting place,” Daniel, in all his bloody glory, smiles.

Preston choked and clawed at Daniel’s hand, failing as his fingers slipped every time. His eyes bulged out as he gasped for breath but all that came out was his own blood. What David doesn’t expect is to see him turn into smoke. As it cleared, Preston was nowhere to be seen. A phone drops to the floor.

David waits with bated breath as he stares at the phone. He didn’t know where else to rest his eyes on. His mind went completely blank after seeing Daniel. Silence invaded the room. Now that everyone’s dead, nobody made a sound. Chills run down his spine as Daniel shoves the key in and pulls the gate wide open. When Daniel looks at him, his features soften and the madness in his eyes seems to dissipate.

“Did they hurt you?” The blonde asks, reaching out to him with gentle hands. David’s first response was to back away, but he stopped. He can’t tell how Daniel would react if he showed resistance to him. Instead, he stood up and waited for him to come closer.

“No, they weren’t able to. You came just on time,” David tries for a small smile but even that he can’t do properly. Tears were his only answer. He was befriending the devil—and he had mixed feelings about it.

Daniel catches him just as his knees go weak. “There there,” he whispers and uses his blood-stained knife to cut through the cloth binding his hands together. Once he’s freed, he brings his arms around to rub at his wrists. They were red and sore.

“D-Daniel,” he croaks. _So much blood_. His eyes couldn’t meet his. His breathing gets labored. He weakens in his grip as David finally faints.

* * *

 He’s been having a habit of falling asleep a lot lately. So many hours wasted into slumber. The moment his eyes open, all David could see was the silhouette of a man. His back ached. He tries to move his head and groans. The silhouette comes closer and lays a hand on his mouth. The touch was gentle and not at all harsh.

“W-where?” he mumbles against the palm of his hand. A sick metallic smell invaded his nostrils. He couldn’t make out his face as the man came closer.

“Just rest for now. Everything will be fine soon.” Those were the last words he heard before the redhead’s vision swam. He lost consciousness yet again.

The next time David wakes up, his eyes open to complete darkness. He panics immediately, sitting up and gasping.

“Where?” he whispers. A hand closes around his wrist and he almost screams.

“Hey,” the familiar voice hushed him. The hand around his wrist rubbed circles on his skin. “It’s okay. You’re fine now. You’re safe,” that was Daniel’s voice. The mattress dips as the other man shifts closer to him. An arm winds around him to pull him closer. David lets out a tired breath.

“Daniel?” He asks for confirmation. In the dark, he was sweating. He had no sense of time and where they were. His mind is taking its time catching up as he feels Daniel wrap him in a hug. They were back home.

“Why is it so dark?” He says under his breath. He senses him lean on David. Daniel’s nose caresses his temple.

“It’s late already. Go back to bed.” Daniel tells him.

He subtly leans away from the other and sighs as Daniel’s arms let go of him. They were like vines trying to envelope him. “What time is it?” The brunette asks.

“It’s 4 in the morning,” the voice replies.

“Where’s my phone?” David realizes with a start that he was in fact shirtless. He’d been sweating profusely and no article of clothing stuck to him except his jeans. His hands go to reach for his pockets. Finding the lump there, he sags with relief.

“It’s right there. Seriously, David, go back to sleep. You’re making me worry about you,” Daniel says. In the dark, David blushes. He twists away from where he assumes the other was and pulls out his phone. The screen lights up and the brunette squints, adjusting to the sudden brightness.

“It’s gonna be a long list of entries,” the voice slithers from behind him as if he was right next to his ear. David has his finger hovering over the app. Suddenly, he feels his eyes go heavy. Did he really have time to read through all of it? “Do it in the morning. Even the brightness is hurting my eyes,” David jolts as Daniel’s head makes contact with his shoulder.

Releasing a tense breath, he powers it off. “Fine. In the morning,” he slides it back carefully into his jeans pocket. With Daniel there, he was unable to move back. His skin was burning from where the blonde was touching him. It took him a couple awkward seconds before Daniel decided to move.

He falls asleep to the sound of his beating heart. It rung in his ears so loudly that he didn’t hear another set of breathing accompanying his.

For the third time that day, David wakes up and there’s light flooding in the room. He doesn’t recognize his surroundings and takes him a moment to ease up. Stretching, he looks around. This was definitely not Daniel’s guest room.

The spot beside him was empty. He could’ve sworn Daniel was right there last night. But... did he ever leave? David bites his lip at the thought. _I never heard the door open_.

Taking out his phone, he scrolls through the entries. His head hurt and seeing so many written down, he feared his head would hurt more. Throwing the phone on the bed, he stands up and begins the search for his shirt. One thing he observed was how immaculate the room seemed—just like Daniel’s. It was white and everything was orderly. The bedsheets were white, the desk was white, the dresser was white. Was this another room Daniel put him in? If so, he hasn’t seen this room before.

He inspects himself in the mirror and combs his messy auburn locks back. How many days has it been since he arrived here? He and Daniel had been acting way too close for comfort. He was no fool and he knew that. There was something about the blonde that he couldn’t decipher. Something about him so... enticing.

The door opens and his eyes bulge out of their sockets when he finds Daniel. Shirtless.

David’s never going to admit the one second his eyes completely swallowed the sight in front of him. No, he refuses to say it ever happened. Daniel walks into the room and flops onto the bed.

“I should probably mention we’re in one of my—“ he coughs, “my friend’s house,” Daniel says. David goes to sit carefully beside him. _That explains it._ But why did the room look so similar to Daniel’s? He sets those questions aside for now.

“What happened last night?” he asks, mind foggy from yesterday’s events. Those blue eyes pierce through him and he senses it hasn’t been a good night at all. He gasps as the events flashed before his eyes. Preston. The show. The scent of death pouring from the walls.

Daniel breathes out something like a chuckle. “It’s been one hell of a ride,” the bed groans as the other sits up. “You fainted right after I got you out of there.” Daniel reminds him. The redhead sits cross-legged in front of the other and tries to relax.

“And then?”

“I tampered with the security cams,” Daniel says offhandedly. “Deleted some footage. I left behind what those bastards done to you. I’m glad the security cam couldn’t make out your face,” a tic forms in his jaw. “Police were on their way. Lucky for us, we got away,” he laughs and falls back onto the bed.

“And the camcorder?” David asks.

“Broke it. I threw it away,” Daniel says.

“Daniel,” he starts, crawling beside him. He trained his eyes to focus only on Daniel’s face. “I... I have no words for what happened last night,” he confesses, honestly shocked. He should feel terrible for those people. He should call the cops on him. But knowing that this was just another world designed exactly for that purpose—for killing one another—he was getting second thoughts. It didn’t matter.

Daniel shifts in his place to face him, a small smile on his face. He brings a hand up and caresses the exposed side of David’s face. They were inches apart. David holds in his breath.

“I’m glad you’re safe,” Daniel says. His blue eyes were soft as he stared into David’s eyes. He tilts his head affectionately towards the other. David doesn’t move. “I admit, it wasn’t the best course of action, killing everyone on sight. But we were given very few options and I’m not about to let them do that to you.”

“I- thank you. So much,” David croaks. He was confused, but he was grateful. He was scared, but happy. Something blossoms in his chest. Daniel inches closer and leans his forehead against his.

“No one’s going to hurt you. I won’t let them,” Daniel smiles, eyes gazing into his own. It was too much. David’s face heats up as he calculates the distance left between them. If he moved any closer—

Daniel lifts his head and places a gentle kiss on his forehead. David melts. Mixed emotions surge through him. He didn’t know if he wanted this, but it sure was a pleasant feeling. The moment ends when Daniel leans back and stretches his arms over his head. David could only gape at him.

“Your phone,” the blonde starts, “did it show you the dead end mark?” he diverts the topic.

David nodded, not trusting himself to speak yet.

Daniel rolls over and grabs something off the desk beside the bed. He faces David and puts his phone in between them. “I’m a bit afraid to ask what was written there before that mark vanished,” he says, lips pulling at the corner.

“It’s horrifying,” David says, looking at Daniel’s phone.  “If you hadn’t come, they would’ve—“ he remembers the haunting texts on his phone, “held me down. Stripped me. It goes on for a while until I couldn’t take it and I just slip away, while they’re doing it.” David grimaces, repulsed with the memory.

“And when it changed?” Daniel’s voice takes on a different tone. He catches his eye.

“You changed my fate. Again,” David mutters. “What do you want me to say? That was frightening and I hope no one ever has to go through that. But then again, Preston’s gone.” David lies on his back and retrieves his own phone. He knows his words could be interpreted differently by the other. Unknown to the other, even David wasn’t sure what he was implying.

“Preston’s gone, but we have other enemies. Some who might be as crazy or crazier,” Daniel exhales. “You have to get used to it. Some people will take advantage of you. I’m here to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

“Thank you, Daniel.” David frowns, thumb lightly caressing the screen of his phone. “I’m sorry I couldn’t be much help if it were the other way around,” and that guilt ate him up. He was nothing like Daniel. He couldn’t save him if the time came for it. What Daniel possessed... was something deadly. _I’m starting to see why the god had his bet on him_ , David thinks.

“Don’t say that,” the other nudges him. “I’m perfectly capable of saving myself. Don’t think about me,” the bed creaks as the other gets up. David stares after him.

“My friend’s doing us a solid and laundering our shirts. After last night, you could barely see the true color of my shirt,” Daniel laughs and clears his throat when David stares at him horrified.

“I’ll go check if breakfast’s up. Nik’s not really a good cook and might need my help,” he smiles, waves at him and walks out the door.

Nik. Brother Nik. He was the man they bumped into when David came to Daniel’s apartment. They were in his house? An odd feeling started to overcome him. Daniel mentioned that he had good intentions. And the way he eyed David that fateful day by the elevator—it made him uncomfortable.

Sitting up, the brunette opens up his phone to read his future diary eager to get his mind off of the man.

 

01

34 DAYS LEFT

     **[21:19]** _Daniel carries me in his arm as we walk out. He goes into another room and deletes some of the footage caught in the security cameras._

 **[21:30]** _The night is dark and Daniel is using the shadows to his advantage. With me in his arms, he stops constantly to catch his breath. Then resumes walking. We weren't walking home._

 **[21:35]** _The police sirens wail in the distance. Somebody must've seen the damage by now. Daniel's calmly hiding._

 **[21:52]** _I wake up for a few seconds. We were in an alley, hiding. In a distance, policemen were scouting the place. I fall asleep again. Daniel carries me in his arm and deeper into the alley._

 **[22:11]** _A figure approaches us. Daniel's got his knife out, still bloody from killing Preston's men. The figure reveals himself to be one of Daniel's brothers, brother Nik._

 **[22:24]** _We enter brother Nik's house and he helps Daniel out. Taking our shirts, he tosses them into the washing machine to be cleaned. Daniel barely spares him a word as he cleans his knife and himself._

 **[22:30]** _They talk in the living room as I sleep in one of the rooms. Brother Nik calmly listened to him. He doesn't question his actions._

 **[23:00]** _After talking, Daniel enters the room I'm sleeping in. He lays beside me, listening to the way I breathe._

 **[23:17]** _Daniel falls asleep._

 **[23:20]** _Brother Nik stood behind the door, hand unsteady on the door knob. After a few seconds, he leaves._

33 DAYS LEFT

 **[04:05]** _I wake up, confused and startled. It's so dark. Daniel holds onto me and reassures me that we're safe._

 **[04:08]** _Daniel's preventing me from reading my diary. He says I should sleep. I can't move with him leaning on my back._

 **[04:10]** _He moves away and I go back to sleep again. Daniel watches my back in the darkness._

 **[04:19]** _Daniel falls asleep._

Goosebumps rise on David’s arms. Daniel has been staring a lot lately, especially when David’s unconscious. The redhead finds it unusual, but compared to what went down last night, he couldn’t bring himself to care more. _This is just his way of taking care of me_ , he thinks.

 

01

33 DAYS LEFT

     **[09:01]** _I wake up and I realize I'm in a different room. Daniel walks in and... dear sweet jesus._

     **[09:07]** _He and I share a moment on the bed, talking about the events of last night. But suddenly, he turns to me. We're so close._

     **[09:08]** _Outside our room, brother Nik stares at the door. He turns away to go back into the kitchen to prepare us a meal._

     **[09:12]** _Daniel stands up and leaves. Something's bothering him. It was so evident in the way he changed topics._

     **[09:19]** _He grabs our newly-made shirts and he slips into his immediately before heading to the kitchen. He and brother Nik greet each other._

 **[09:20]** _I reach over and grab his phone. Daniel left it here either accidentally or on purpose._

David looks behind him at Daniel’s spot. Sure enough, the white device rested atop the sheets where he left it. He looks nervously at the door and back at his phone. That was the last entry. It didn’t even tell him what time Daniel plans to come back so that he may put the phone back. He might get caught.

David looks at the door. _Fuck it_.

He crawls and lies on his stomach as he grabs Daniel’s phone. He wonders what’s written down in his entries that night. He doubts Daniel had enough time to look through his entries as he was busy... killing people.

He opens it up and scrolls to the time Preston turned the camcorder on. What he reads shocks him.

 

02

34 DAYS LEFT

     **[20:51]** _The screen comes to life. David's imprisoned. David's scared. This sorry excuse of a human life talks to him as if he were higher than him. My poor David. Preston, I'm going to kill you. I’m going to kill all of you._

 **[20:52]** _"I'm going to break him," he said. "I've never killed anyone before," he said. I can see the thrill in his eyes. He's going to take it out on David. David mustn't be touched. Every second he's tied is a second off Preston's life. All I see is red. Red. Blinding rage. David. David, I'm coming to get you._

 **[20:53]** _Threats eliminated. They cannot touch him. They cannot hurt him. Don't let Preston open that gate. I will throw my blade at him if I have to. David... he’s cowering in fear._

 **[20:54]** _I'm coming for you, Preston. I'm going to fucking tear into your petty army like they're paper and I'm going to get what's mine back. David is all that matters. David needs to be safe. David is trapped and I must free him. David isn’t safe there. Only I can save him._

David covers his mouth. All his entries sounded so _possessive_ of him. There, he said it. Last night, Daniel was fueled by the need to only save him. It was scary to see what it made him do. He scrolls down and it’s all the same possessive nonsense. Cold tingles walk down his spine as if someone’s watching him.

David looks over his shoulder at the door. It was closed.

He returns to reading more of Daniel’s diary entries. As soon as he retrieves David from the cell, the entries ease up on the possessive behaviour. It stated mostly how glad he was that David was safe. How Daniel held onto him as if he were life itself. How... _cute_ he was when he was asleep.

“Oh god,” David mutters, cheeks going red.

He got to the part where they enter brother Nik’s house and the entries started dying down. David was safe so his future diary hadn’t a reason to worry anymore.

“Breakfast may take a while, but I got us our shirts back.”

David jumps out of his skin at the voice. Turning around, he spies Daniel leaning back on the door. He didn’t even hear it open. Seconds ago, he was _sure_ there was no one there. Literally seconds ago.

Daniel had his shirt on while he had David’s over his arm. He tosses it to him and the brunette catches it. Face aflame from being caught, he stares at his lap as he puts it on. He hears him walk toward him, beside him. Daniel bends over to retrieve his phone.

“Find anything helpful?” he says. David looks up and he’s smirking.

“I’m sorry-“

“Don’t be,” Daniel chuckles, sitting adjacent to him. “It monitors you, after all. You have every right to it maybe more than I do.”

“I was just curious,” David confesses. Daniel tilts his head, assessing him with mirthful eyes. The redhead burns hotter.

The sound of his laugh is all David could hear. Daniel bumps his shoulder with his. “It’s okay, David,” he reassures him. He stands up and offers him a hand. “I came back cause I thought I’d come get you and show you off to Nik today. He seems to be interested in meeting you.”

The brunette takes his hand and is pulled up. He collides clumsily against the other’s chest. They look at each other and step a good distance away, acting like nothing happened but David knows the smirk on Daniel’s face is going to stay there for a good while.

Daniel opens the door and again, he feels like the ground beneath his feet falls from under him. Pitch black. He realizes he hasn’t let go of Daniel’s hand when he feels him squeeze it. The duo glances at each other. It was time to meet Zemuug and enter the realm once more. And so with prepared braveness, they step foot into the darkness.

They keep walking hand in hand. It comes as a shock to him to feel Daniel’s hand still in his own. They’ve been walking for a while. When the lights shine down on Zemuug, David is more shocked to see Daniel hasn’t left his side. The blonde had the same reaction on his face.

“You two are the first ones to arrive,” the god speaks up. He turns to them in a graceful sweep and lowers himself from his throne. “Daniel and David.”

He gulps, seeing the god from up close. His facial features were obscured by his cloak. His hands were thin and long. At the very tips were unmistakable claws.

“How do you find my world so far?” as if sitting down for a chat, the god reduces in size to match them.

“It’s pretty okay,” David smiles shakily. “Way too realistic. The people there are more lifelike than I expected,” he says. Seeing the god up close made him lose his confidence in badmouthing the other. It wouldn’t be appropriate.

“Why put me in a religious group?” Daniel asks bluntly.

Zemuug turns to him. Claws clacking against each other as he presses his hands together, he says, “I’m only tailoring your lives here to your previous ones. Something similar but much more subdued, in your case.” David couldn’t tell if it was a jab at the other but Daniel’s furrowed eyebrows indicated he had no idea _what_ that jab was. Nobody knew their past as so he could not tell.

“How about me, um, sir?” David speaks up. “Why did I wake up with no, uh, role?” When he woke up, he was in the middle of the woods. He was thankful that somebody resided there—and befriended him.

“You aren’t the only one who woke with no assigned role. I simply allowed you to find your own path.” Zemuug replied. “Was I mistaken in my choosing?” there was something in the tone of his voice that hinted he knew of Gwen. David shook his head.

“Which brings me to another topic. You two... are working together,” the god says. David bows his head. “Not that there’s a problem. I’m pleased to see you two coming together to defeat the other competitors,” he leans in comically and cups a hand around where his mouth is supposed to be. “Don’t tell the others.”

David smiles, almost laughing.

“I may have to make... adjustments,” Zemuug says thoughtfully. He retreats and as he does, grows back into his original size. He ascends back to the throne. Like a switch, David could feel the presence of others starting to come in one by one.

“What do you think he meant by that?” Daniel whispers to him. The brunette shrugs but something about it made him hope it was a good thing.

The lights come on to display those the players already know and those who are defeated. A new addition was made. David’s hand goes clammy as he sees Preston’s face motionless in the distance. As soon as everyone was there, the god began by announcing the death of another. Preston, the 6th diary user.

David remembers Daniel’s list of opponents and starts mentally listing them down.

1\. David  
2\. Daniel  
3\. Penelope Priss - Eliminated  
4\. Neil - Eliminated  
5.  
6\. Preston - Eliminated  
7\. Shotgun boy  
8\. Nurf - Eliminated  
9\. Roof girl’s sidekick  
10.  
11.

Roof girl – to be determined

There were seven of them left, five of them were threats. There were two more people they haven’t seen or heard from. Shotgun boy only made his presence known that day when roof girl blew up a building. They weren’t sure which number the girl was so he put her aside for now.

“You guys are on a roll,” one of the unseen opponents whistles. “Makes me wonder just how you killed them. Was it a quick death, or did you take your time?” they ask. It was male, judging from the voice.

“What, do you like, fantasize about dead bodies? That’s so disgusting,” the girl with pink hair pipe up. Roof girl. Seriously, he and Daniel have to come up with better aliases for them.

“I didn’t mention such things!” the male countered, voice cracking. He was in his teens.

“This is getting way too exciting. And I haven’t even met any of you yet,” a younger voice interrupts them. “Though, my friend has. One of you. It was the night Preston was killed,” she drawls.

David freezes. They’ve been caught. Daniel beside him exercises a cool expression. There was a possibility this kid could see the blonde in this realm without Daniel knowing who she was.

“I don’t think she had anything to do with his death though. But according to my friend, she just stood there outside. Her phone was out too and she constantly checked it but she never entered the auditorium.”

Daniel relaxes beside him. It wasn’t him but someone else was in the same area as them. That was equally as dangerous if they figured out he and Daniel were diary users.  

“It was a trap to enter. Any fool could’ve seen that,” a sharp reply from another person in the room. David wonders if the others could see each other. Did they ally with others or did they only observe from afar? Little miss pink seems to react to this, looking to her side. She could see the one who spoke up.

“Not really. Who would come to a play and expect it to be a trap?” the girl from a while ago asked.

“The ones who’ve been here the longest should know by now that everything’s a trap.” A new voice joins in. This one was much older and it surprised David. He thought he and Daniel were fighting a bunch of teenagers and a kid, minus Penelope.

Zemuug raises a hand to silence them. “As much as I’d love to see you all here and talking, there’s a risk of you finding each other just by listening to the others. That’s not how I want the game to be played,” he says. “Congratulations, 2nd diary user. You’re on your way to becoming the winner.”

“Not if I can help it,” a female voice cut through. “Put us out of this room and I’ll kill him myself. Now, we’ll see who truly owns the game.” She laughs, a sadistic little laugh that chills David’s bones.

The god is quiet for a few seconds. Then he nods. “Very well. You have 33 more days and I doubt that’ll be a problem to any of you.”

“Good. The sooner the better. I’ll see you around, pretty boy,” and just like that, her presence vanishes. Her farewell promised trouble the next time they encounter her. David wasn’t mentally prepared. He just got back from the nightmare that is Preston—and he’s entering into a new one off the bat.

Daniel’s holding tightly onto his hand. As David’s vision go dark, his grip starts to loosen up. One by one, they all leave the dark place.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anyone wanna guess who the remaining players are? *pathetically covers up the character tags*


	6. I'm on that faded love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One thing I've noticed with my fanfics is that I'm always kinda reluctant when it comes to the actual fluff? Or the, um, y'know. Steamy parts. It always ends up being the last bit and a couple awkward flirting in the beginning. So, y'know, let's spice things up. GAH I sound so awks. It's been years since I wrote anything too steamy omg.
> 
> TW: DUBCON, SORTA. Yeah.

David opens his eyes expecting to be back in the room with the white walls and the white furniture. He does not expect to come to the same dark place with Daniel sitting up beside him, back rigid with alert. His hand rests on his arm and the blonde snaps out of it.

“We’re still here?” David mumbles.

A cough interrupts them and they both face forward. Zemuug reduced in size to their height and stood before them. The redhead pulls himself up slowly.

“My apologies. There’s something I had to tell you before you left. I’ll make this quick,” Zemuug says. “Daniel, what you did to those people, although havocking, was unnecessary. Emotion clouds the mind, I see. But the massacre you left behind could’ve cost you and David’s life.” The god says in a placating tone.

“How so?” Daniel narrows his eyes, not entirely provoked but more concerned.

“If that was the real world, you and David could be tracked in mere hours. We can’t have you playing the game while you’re serving life sentences.” The god says. “You need to avoid being reckless. This world may be virtual, but that doesn’t mean it can’t hinder you in the game.”

David groans. Right. The police were after them—or rather, Daniel. He faintly recalls the sound of sirens when he woke up in the dark alley. They were lucky to outrun them.

“I am not sorry for what I’ve done, if that’s what you’re asking of me,” Daniel bows his head, eyes on his lap. “They got what they deserved, even if they weren’t real people.”

“And what classifies as people to you, hm?” Zemuug raises himself a few inches taller. “Is it the lack of sympathy of my creation that doesn’t make them real enough? Is it their undying loyalty to serve someone who chose to harm your beloved?” His voice seems to get louder.

David looks up with a frown. There was something in the deity’s tone that indicated irony. He wasn’t sure if the god was capable of humor, intentionally or not. He wasn’t about to call him out on it though.

“In your world, people do that just the same. People are empathetic. They use others for their own gain. Some gullible enough to be used,” Zemuug says like an adult scolding a child. Daniel refuses to look away. “The people you encounter here are just the same, if not, tamer than your actual world. And you call that inhuman?”

There was a second where both of them quieted.

“Almost a hundred lives, slaughtered by just one man. Nobody deserves that misery. ” The god punctuates.

Daniel’s lips form a hard thin line. “I gave them a quick death right beside their leader. What more could they want?” his tone was bitter.

“That’s not what I meant,” the god sighs, almost frustrated. David looks back and forth between them discreetly. Daniel was restless on his spot. Zemuug drifts closer to the duo and puts a clawed hand on top of Daniel’s head. The redhead doesn’t breathe. If those claws dug at the right places, he could tear Daniel’s head off in a matter of seconds. But his intention didn’t match the softness of his voice.

“Boy, please don’t bring this hatred back with you to your world. I want a god who’s capable of mercy. I don’t want an impulsive terrorist on the loose. People will need someone to look up to—to tell their prayers to in their time of need. If you happen to be that man, you will need to extend your ears to others and not just David.” Zemuug glances at the brunette’s direction. He’s stayed unnoticed for the duration of the conversation that his sudden attention on him made him uneasy.

“You said...” Daniel stutters, eyes wide. Zemuug’s words come back to David and he nearly falls back. Zemuug was implying that Daniel take his place.

The god chuckles. “Don’t get too excited. You never know who could turn the tides. But if you successfully beat the others and still keep that attitude of yours,” he looks at David, “then we might need someone else around to keep you in check.” That was a grin. His face was obscured but David could hear the grin in his voice. He blinks owlishly at the divine figure.

David gets to live when Daniel wins. _If_ Daniel wins.

Zemuug removes his hand from blonde locks. “Think of it as a bonus. And a thank you gift for passing my test,” he says. The god stood in place. They weren’t done talking. “Now, what I came here to talk about is the situation you got yourselves in. A few hours ago, you got the cops on your tail. That only complicates things so I’ll do you another and wipe their memories clean of the incident. Preston may be of your world, but his followers aren’t. No matter. I’ll see what I can do so that nobody knows of the great tragedy you unleashed.”

Now Zemuug retreated. “Farewell, young mortals. Try not to do anything too dramatic. That’s Sasha’s job,” he ascends back to his throne with a deep chuckle. As darkness closed in for the second time, David had only one thought in his mind.

_Who’s Sasha?_

* * *

He gasps, air filling his lungs as he awakens. David nearly stumbles when he realizes he’s standing up. He and Daniel were both standing up, still in the room. The other man has his hand on the door knob as if he’s about to open it. Daniel shakes his head, blinking. Coming back from the dark place seemed like waking up from a dream.

“At least we didn’t get knocked out like last time?” David offers, shrugging his shoulders. Daniel laughs at him.

“I’ll never get used to that.”

“Neither will I,” David smiles. As they exit the room, they couldn’t help giggling to themselves. It was a weird sensation waking up while you were standing. But as he trails behind the blonde, David couldn’t get rid of the weird feeling in his gut—like he was forgetting something.

They stumble into the kitchen and the sight of food makes David coherent again. Brother Nik was finished and waited patiently for them. David doesn’t miss the way his eyes dart to David for a second before settling on Daniel.

Small talk was inevitable but David tries his best to concentrate on his food after a subtle _thank you_ to the other man. Daniel took up the space beside him and helped himself to the stack of pancakes on his plate. Brother Nik clears his throat, albeit forcedly.

“So you’re Daniel’s colleague?” the man asks. David opens his mouth to reply but Daniel beats him to it. What he says only makes the atmosphere in the air more uncomfortable.

“I’d like to use the term friends more. We were pretty solid back then, weren’t we, Davey?” the blonde says after swallowing the food in his mouth. “We still are but we do have a lot of catching up to do.”

David smiles and nods. The way brother Nik looked at him was so calculating that he avoided staring at him for too long. He hadn’t expected this from the man he bumped into a few days ago.

“And where did you two meet?” Brother Nik tilts his head in the same fashion as Daniel. The redhead gulps, looking at the blonde warily. Then an idea pops in his head.

“We worked as camp counselors and Daniel signed up when we were lacking in staff. I worked with a friend of mine, Gwen, and we kept the camp running. The camp was especially active in summer since, well, it was a summer camp. We’d do tons of activities with the kids and Daniel would help sort them out,” David forced a smile on his face, making his lie as believable as possible. He could see Daniel perk up and catch onto him.

“Those kids sure were a handful, weren’t they, Davey?” he laughs.

“They sure were,” David giggles. Brother Nik looked between them.

“And what was the name of this camp?” the man inquired.

David almost stuttered in his act. His fork froze over his food and he could see Daniel eyeing him from the side. “Camp... Camp...” he cursed himself for thinking too slow.

“Camp Camp?” Brother Nik raised an eyebrow skeptically.

“Yes,” Daniel took over for him. “It’s short for Camp Campbell. Gwen’s uncle ran the place but he wasn’t always there.” There was a tone of finality in Daniel’s voice that both men quieted down. Brother Nik nodded, mouth closing when he was about to question David more.

Instead, he settles on, “I wouldn’t want to disrupt on your catching up. Call me if you need anything, brother Daniel,” he nods to the blonde and takes his leave soon after.

“Thanks,” David releases a sigh once the coast was clear. “That was some quick thinking. Camp Campbell is a pretty clever name.” He says.

Daniel makes a smug face and smirks at him. “You could always count on me for the saving,” he says. David doesn’t miss the double meaning in his words and nods tight-lipped.

The morning passes without seeing the owner of the house often, to David’s relief. He wasn’t too comfortable with brother Nik’s presence and he’s sure Daniel’s caught on to that. He speaks up when the other attempts to question David more, leaving no room to raise other questions. The other doesn’t seem too bothered, being all too happy to just talk to Daniel.

David’s sulking in his room. He doesn’t want to admit it, but it was blatantly obvious. Daniel was right outside the room, talking to Nik and clearing up anything else about last night and he wasn’t all too happy being left alone here. His phone was probably blowing up about their interactions and he didn’t bother checking at the moment. He spends the time packing up whatever stuff they brought with them fleeing from Preston’s men as they were just about to leave.

It was afternoon when they depart from brother Nik.  They hail a cab to get home and once inside, David’s glad for the privacy he and Daniel can have at the back. He inspects the blonde and sees him in a new white polo shirt. Apparently the blood stains hadn’t completely come off the blue fabric and brother Nik offered one of his shirts. David couldn’t explain the loathing he had for the shirt that clung to the blonde. The blue fabric lay in folded heaps on his lap.

“Something on your mind?” The blonde asks without looking at the brunette. David bites the inside of his cheek. Did Daniel notice the way he was staring at him? He guesses not since he was focused on the view outside.

David lit up, remembering their meeting with Zemuug. There _was_ something he wanted to talk about with him. He tells himself that this is an important thing to talk about and it wasn’t just an excuse to hoard Daniel’s attention. _God, I’m sounding childish_ , he realizes with a start.

“You remember when the god sent us away?” He asks quietly. Daniel turns his attention away from the window to focus on him. He nods. “Did you hear him say a name?” he follows up. The way Daniel’s eyes widened indicated that he did. David nods and slides closer to him.

“You think Sasha’s one of the others,” Daniel says like he’s interpreting his thoughts. Again, David nods.

“Roof girl,” if it were possible, Daniel lights up like a Christmas tree on Christmas eve. It was just a hunch as he connects bits of info to the girl with pink hair that day. “Dramatic is the word he used to describe her. Roof girl did put up a show that day.” Daniel comments.

David nods along, seeing the picture. It was loosely supported by what little info they have, but nonetheless they had a name to their opponent.

“That’s one way to describe her showing up. Um, not counting the casualties. Who else would announce their presence like that?” David hums. His eyes dart to Daniel purposely and the blonde stares.

Daniel pouts when David gives him a look of accusation. “You think I’m dramatic?” The blonde scoffs and does an amazing flip of his hair, if his hair were long enough to flip.

At least, David thought it was amazing. _A for effort_ , he subconsciously comments and blushes.

He forces those thoughts away with a laugh. The way Daniel’s blue eyes twinkle makes his stomach do backflips. He knows he shouldn’t be laughing at his sick joke. Going on a killing spree wasn’t a dramatic entrance. But-

“Didn’t you already guess? I was born for the theatre,” Daniel exaggerates a gravelly voice as he lays a hand on his forehead. “Did you like that? That was my impression of Preston.” He does a mini bow from his seat.

David bursts out laughing and clutches his stomach. The grin on Daniel’s face only brought forth the butterflies. “We are horrible people!” David was torn between scolding him and laughing. He sits up the best he can when Daniel inclines toward him.

“Good. Nobody else will want you but me,” Daniel whispers dangerously close to his face.

“What?” David wipes the tears in his eyes from laughing.

“What?” Daniel mimics, grinning. Before David could process what he said, the blonde leans away as if nothing happened. David knows his face is on fire so he looks the other way. The distance between them seems to shorten and the air became all the more suffocating. David coughs, dispelling the blood in his face.

As his tension eases, he nibbles on his thumb. He was forgetting another piece to the puzzle. There was one more thing that bugged him.

He snaps his fingers. The sound was too loud in the awkward silence. “Zemuug told us her name.” He says immediately. “He was opposed to that, wasn’t he? He wasn’t supposed to tell us,” David’s eyebrows come together in confusion. Daniel leans back on the seat and hums.

“Do you think he’s got a reason why he did?” Daniel asks.

David shakes his head. “No clue.”

“Unless he wants us to win,” Daniel mutters. _No, that can’t be_. David should know better than to infer that the god was siding with them but at the moment, it was all he could come up with. He even told them he’d consider allowing David to live too! _That’s one heck of a deal_.

“You’ve heard the way he talked to you. It’s like, he wants you to change and be god worthy,” David splays his hands out. “I doubt he talks to the others like that. He even considered letting me live when the god’s already chosen—if that ever happens to be you. It’s like, kind of unfair to those other people who are fighting for their lives, y’know?” David frowns.

Zemuug may have broken his own rule but how was this supposed to give them the upper hand? Unless it was just a show of power and-

“Do you think it’s favoritism?” David asks. It could be possible. _But why would he play favorites in a dangerous game like this?_ It hurt David’s head trying to come up with logical reasons why Zemuug was rooting for Daniel.

Said man chuckles and glances at the driver to make sure they were still unheard. “It’d be nice to say I’m god’s favorite.” He tilts his head thoughtfully.

“That’s pushing it a little too far,” David frowns.

Daniel shrugs, “It sure does look like it. I’m god’s favorite. What do you know?” He sticks his tongue out. It was so childish of him that David couldn’t suppress a giggle. The high dies down as he’s brought back to the present. So many things confused him right now and he won’t be getting an answer anytime soon. Zemuug seemed to pop up only when one of his players gets eliminated. And David sincerely hoped it won’t be anytime soon.

The ride home was of awkward silences and bated breaths. David was bothered that they weren’t able to continue their conversation of Sasha but he also wasn’t too enthusiastic about facing Daniel again. Something knocked the breath out of him when he’s conversing with him. He felt incontrollable of his body whenever the other stared him down. It was concerning on his part.

They climb down the cab and make their way back to Daniel’s apartment. David freezes when he spots someone in front of the door. It takes him a second to recognize the tan girl sitting on the steps, glancing at her watch nervously. David comes close enough for the other to recognize him and falls back in surprise when Gwen springs up.

“Gwen! You’re here,” David smiles, relieved at seeing another familiar face.

“Figured I’d come by,” she says and looks behind David for a split second. “I had this awful feeling in my gut like something bad happened.” She rubs her arms.

David tenses, but doesn’t let it show. “What awful feeling?” he asks innocently. He can feel Daniel’s presence behind him now.

“That you guys were in trouble?” Gwen grimaces and lifts her hands. “I dunno, I just- it’s been a few days and I’ve been thinking about what you said. That this is a whole game to you guys and there are actually people coming after you. It’s kind of scary knowing someone you met is being followed by a crazed lunatic.”

“Sasha,” Daniel intercepts. Both he and Gwen look at him.

“We found out her name’s Sasha. Or well, we deduced it was,” he says.

Gwen scoffs, “How? Did you have a list of names to go through and figured which one suited her more?”

“Funny. But no,” Daniel glances at David. He knew what he was thinking. How were they supposed to tell Gwen about Zemuug? Or if they should tell her about him at all. “We had sources.” Daniel says.

“Sources?” Gwen echoes suspiciously. David didn’t like the atmosphere all of a sudden and he decided to take it down another route.

“Gwen,” he calls out to her. “You came all this way to see us?” A small smile makes its way to his face. A genuine smile unlike the one he’s been putting up in brother Nik’s presence.

“Just you, actually.” Gwen finally turns to him. “What’ve you been up to?” She left out the words _with Daniel_ but he could sense it was what she meant. Daniel makes this his cue to leave but not without calling out to David once more.

“I’ll wait for you inside.”

“Um actually,” Gwen says, halting Daniel in his steps. “I’m planning to steal him for the rest of the day. Is that okay?” She says. The redhead smiles. He kinda _really_ missed Gwen.

Daniel’s silence was unwelcoming. The brunette shifts in her spot, unused to his staring. Daniel frowns minutely but smiles widely the next second. “Bring him back in one piece,” he says and turns his back on them to enter the building.

Gwen grimaces at David. “He wasn’t a jackass the first day. The hell did you do to him?” she whispers. David opts not to reply and chuckles instead. She leads them to her car and drives off to the nearest fast food resto. On their way there, they made small talk and David filled Gwen in on their recent adventures. She knew about the diaries now and she didn’t seem all that bothered about it. David left out the part where he got kidnapped and Daniel went on a killing spree.

It’s 5 PM when they arrive and David checks his phone. A weird feeling of calm washes over him as he scans through the diary entries.  It was devoid of any life threatening entries and counts it as a win for the day. He can get this few hours of relaxation and no fighting with anyone.

 

01

33 DAYS LEFT

     **[16:53]** _The cab stops beside the apartment. Daniel and I get out after paying. Someone's waiting for us at the entrance. It's Gwen!_

 **[17:01]** _Daniel goes back to his room albeit reluctantly, gripping too tightly on the fabric in his hands. Meanwhile, Gwen and I make our way to her car._

 **[17:08]** _On the road, we talk about Daniel and I. I tell her about the play we've seen. She says she's never seen it but she's seen fliers around. The thought of Preston makes me want to hurl, so I divert. I tell her about Daniel's friend—or uh, brother._

 **[17:10]** _Gwen's looking at me weird. She asks if I'm jealous. As if!_

 **[17:13]** _We get off the car and get some fast food. The customers look fairly decent. No suspicious looking or threatening people. I’m probably overanalysing things._

 **[17:15]** _Looking at the menu, I realize I haven't eaten since the breakfast in brother Nik's house._

 **[17:18]** _I realize I never gave her an answer._ Am _I jealous? Recently I've been thinking about Daniel more. Is it ‘cause I'm seeing him in a new light after he saved me?_

 **[17:21]** _Two kids bump into me as they run. I nearly trip but catch my balance._

 

He pockets his future diary and follows Gwen to the counter to order. Afterwards, he scouts for a place for them to sit. David’s tapping his foot and drumming his fingers on the table as he waits for Gwen to make her way to the front of the counter. He watches her order and wait by the side. She scans the place and David waves his hand to get her attention. She smiles and David smiles back.

 _Why can’t things stay like this?_ David thinks as he watches her. Everything around them is peaceful. People walked in and out, ordered their food, and talked with friends. Nobody was killing anyone and it was nice. He gets up to help her with the tray when the food arrived.

“Yo, I can handle,” she says. David shakes his head and takes it anyway, earning a half-hearted swat from her. On their way back, he nearly trips as two kids run past them.

“Hey!” he squeaks, catching the tray before it fell. _Dang. That entry was there to warn me and I still forgot_. He almost face palms.

The kids looked back, one boy and one girl. They were holding hands and they looked way too precious. “Crap! I’m sorry, mister!” The girl said. She had green hair and a bandage on her right cheek. She wore overalls that looked worn. The boy wore a simple blue hoodie with dark curly hair sticking out of the hood. He looked unamused.

David sighs and smiles kindly at them. “That’s alright. Hey, where’re you two off too? Where are your parents?” He asks, looking between the boy and the girl. The boy rolls his eyes and tugs on the girl’s hand.

But the girl didn’t let him pull her. “We’re actually running away,” she grins widely up at him.

“Wait, what?” David’s eyes widen and he frowns. Gwen puts a hand on his shoulder and pulls him back a bit. He didn’t realize he was bending over to talk to them.

“Come on, Nikki. Don’t talk to strangers, remember?” The boy growled, tugging on her more but the girl didn’t budge. In fact, she stayed where she was, looking up at them excitedly.

“My step mom can be annoying, especially when she’s out with her boyfriend. I mean, who would want to be subjected to that?” She points to another direction. David and Gwen follow with their eyes to see a young lady cozying up way too close with a man who looked way too old for her.

“That’s your mom?” Gwen deadpanned.

“ _Step_ mom. It’s a common mistake,” The girl—Nikki, David remembered the boy call her—says. “Like how I was made,” she adds.

David’s head snaps back to her, mouth open in shock. She was still smiling though.

“Way to make it awkward, Nikki. We should probably be going now,” the boy grounds out, eyeing the two adults in front of him. He’s still pulling on her arm and she still refuses to move.

“Go where, exactly? You two kids shouldn’t be out there unsupervised.” Gwen crosses her arms. David nods in agreement. “It’s not safe to be alone.”

“Oh, I know. That’s why Max’s with me.” The girl says. The boy smacks his hand on his forehead, groaning more.

“Great, they know our names now.” Max says.

“Wellll,” David comes up with an idea and smiles at them. “If you’re only trying to avoid her, why not just sit with us instead of wandering outside? It’s much safer here within her vicinity than being lost out there.”

Max scoffs, “Who’s to say we’re safer with y-“

“Deal!” Nikki jumps and tugs Max towards them, making him curse. Gwen gives David an amused smirk and shakes her head in disbelief. They pick out a table that’s considerably far from Nikki’s step mom and grab extra chairs for the two kids.

“This is a turn of events,” Gwen says, biting into her burger.

“You tell me,” Max deadpans, shoving his hands in the pocket of his hoodie. He’s glaring at his friend but Nikki doesn’t seem to notice. Or if she did, she isn’t bothered by it. The boy grunts, head lolling back. “We’re already stuck in this table. Might as well tell you. She actually _is_ Nikki’s mother.” He jabs his thumb at the direction of Nikki’s step mom.

The girl gasps. “We don’t talk about that! That woman is in no way related to me.” The girl says, gesturing to herself. David watches them bicker. Gwen looks up once in a while when they swear but doesn’t comment on it. David wanted to though.

“Nikki, you can’t just disown your own mom. Sure, she’s a harlot. Sure, she hits on every guy that passes by her. Sure, she’s—actually I have no idea where I’m going with this.” Max says.

“Exactly! That gives me disowning rights.” She grins. Stealthily, she steals a french fry from Gwen’s tray when the brunette wasn’t looking. David chuckles and doesn’t tell Gwen.

“Here, have mine.” He nudges his pile to the kids. Nikki digs in without a second thought while Max looks at him suspiciously.

“You didn’t put anything on that, did you? What if you lured us here just so you could kidnap us? Nikki, stop that! You’re embarrassing.” Max swats at the girl beside him. The girl nudges him away and continues to gobble down the bits. She looks up momentarily to say something but the food in her mouth makes it sound gibberish.

A long sigh emanates from the too young boy. “Fuck it, you become incoherent at the sight of food. Why the fuck am I even trying,” he says.

“I assure you, I did not put anything on the fries,” David laughs. “If I did, you would’ve seen the effects on me by now.” He smiles when the boy opens his mouth to retort but becomes at a loss for words. Max rolls his eyes and leans further back in his chair.

“Y’never know,” he mutters, but it’s obvious to both of them he didn’t believe his own words.

“So, what brings the two of you here?” Nikki pipes up after shoving a handful of food down her throat. “You out on a date?” She nudges the air and winks at David jokingly.

“You could say that, but it’s more like a date between friends.” David says, smiling when he caught Gwen’s eye.

“Yeah. David here isn’t the type to date girls per se.” She smiles deviously at him. His face colors at her words. He can see himself match the color of his hair and it was ridiculous. Nikki makes a long _oooooooooh_ sound as she connects the dots.

“You-you never know!” David feebly defends himself. “I could try. I'm just not looking for anyone lately.” He huffs, looking down at his tray. An image of Daniel crosses his mind and he goes impossibly redder.

“Got your eye on a dude?” Nikki asks, again, nudging the air and winking at him. David groans and covers his face.

“As a matter of fact, he does,” Gwen’s teasing tone reached his ears and he sinks lower. He stands up.

“I’m using the restroom,” he excuses himself and rushes past them. He can hear Nikki and Gwen’s distant laughter from afar and shakes his head. A smile snakes its way to his face anyway. The evening just got better with these kids. He’s glad to have come here with Gwen and accidentally meet the two children.

He enters the restroom and washes his hands in the sink. His eyes dart to the mirror to check underneath the stalls. He was alone. He dries his hands with a paper towel and throws it in the trash bin. David enters one of the stalls, locks himself in there, and checks his phone. Every time he pulls out the device, he can’t help feel a bit paranoid. It’s become such a habit, relying on the phone for his future. David didn’t like that feeling.

 

01

33 DAYS LEFT

     **[17:30]** _The two kids, Max and Nikki, come sit with us while we avoid Nikki's mother. Gwen sits beside me while the kids sit together._

 **[17:38]** _The two children bicker and tease each other. It's such an endearing sight. Such a contrast to the violence I've experienced these past few days. I could almost cry from happiness._

 **[17:47]** _I leave to go to the restroom after Gwen's attempt at embarrassing me. Sometimes, I love her. Sometimes... I still kinda love her._

**[17:50]** _Outside, Gwen and Nikki are talking about Daniel. Gwen’s indulging Nikki way too much for David’s liking. Max couldn't care any less._

 **[17:54]** _I exit the restroom and come back to the table. This time, it's Nikki's turn to go to the restroom. Gwen accompanies her, leaving me with Max._

And as David leaves the restroom, he sees Nikki turn around and say something to Gwen. They stand up and Gwen tells him she’ll bring Nikki to the restroom. David nods pretending he doesn't know and goes back to his seat, picking up his cup and sipping on the straw.

“How’d you know I didn’t poison that while you were away and you could be slowly dying any time now?” Max says, looking at David and the cup. For a moment, the redhead releases the straw with a pop. He sets the cup down.

“Gwen would’ve seen you.” He says. Max shrugs.

“She could be on board with that.” The boy smirks.

David chuckles. This kid was something, alright. He knows better than to doubt him, but he decided to indulge him. He puts his arms on the table. “If you’re planning to kill me, you wouldn’t do it in front of these people.” He says. He watches as Max bites his lip and glare at him.

“Why not?” He says, a bit uncertain now.

“For one, they’ll know who the suspect is.” David says, easing up on him and leaning back to give the kid some space. Max scoffs.

“Yeah, the guy who made your food.” He snorts. That emits a laugh from David. He’s starting to like Max already. A burst of joy explodes from his chest as he sees the grouchy boy release a small smile.

David finishes up and waits for the two girls to return from their trip to the toilet. Soon, Gwen and Nikki stroll back in and they spend a couple more minutes talking before Nikki decided it was time to come back to her mom.

David and Gwen wave goodbye as the two kids approach the lady with her date. He and Gwen leave the resto talking about the sudden encounter with the kids and the unexpected friendship they made. They get inside the car with a sigh. David loses himself in the music Gwen puts on and hums. Gwen’s laughing at him and overpowers the radio by singing. The night is setting in and the stars start peeking out. It’s a beautiful sight and being with Gwen like this couldn’t make him any happier.

He takes note of the time and realizes it’s almost 7 PM. He checks his phone quickly and pockets it when nothing threatening is displayed. He relaxes in his seat and listens to Gwen’s humming. He hums along, albeit off key.

“You have a music preference?” Gwen asks.

David shrugs. “Not really. I just like whatever. If I like it, I like it.” He laughs. He wasn’t the type to have favorites and listened to whatever he felt he wanted to listen to. “Though I did play a guitar,” he sits up.

 _Yeah_. Yeah, he remembers it now. In the back of his mind, he can see small flashes—him strumming a brown guitar around a camp fire. He couldn’t make out the words and the people who surrounded him. But he was singing and all he could remember was the feeling of contentment. Gwen’s asking him something but can’t focus on her. His mind was elsewhere.

David groans, fingers coming up to tangle in his hair. His head was suddenly pounding. _Memories of the past._ The flashes were brief but disorienting _._

_Trees. Sparkling lake. Childish laughter. There’s a place I know that’s tucked away—_

“David! Are you okay?” Gwen’s sudden contact on his shoulder made him jolt. Slowly, the images fade and he’s left with a headache. His eyes are closed and his hands are over his face. He slides his hands down and sees that Gwen has stopped the car by the side of the road.

“No, I—“ David sighs. He rubs his face and turns to face Gwen. “Flashes of old memories. It was overwhelming.” He says, frowning. Gwen’s hand doesn’t come up from his shoulder. She’s looking at him worriedly.

“I’ll be fine,” David smiles. His hands rest on his lap. “I’m sorry for that,” he says.

“No, don’t apologize. You gave me quite a scare and I thought it was something serious. It’s fine, dude.” Her hand retreats and she starts driving again. David massages his temples and sighs. His memories. It wasn’t gone after all. It was stowed away, and he has to find ways to trigger them.

As they pull up near the building, David thanks Gwen for the time and hugs her quickly. She drives off into the night and David’s left standing there just staring. He looks up at the dark sky and takes a deep breathe. _I’m fine. I’ll get those memories back somehow. It’s going to be okay_. It became his mantra as he stalked up the stairs and stood outside Daniel’s room. He puts his hand on the knob and finds it open.

He locks it behind him as he makes his way to the guest room Daniel assigned to him. His hands are reaching for the phone in his pocket but the sudden opening of the door catches him by surprise. Daniel’s door is pushed open and there the blonde stood, arms crossed.

“Hey,” David starts. “You still up?” he shifts in place. The window in Daniel’s room is filtering in moonlight and Daniel becomes a silhouette. The shadow of Daniel’s figure sends chills up his spine. The blonde doesn’t move from his spot.

“It’s 7:10, David. Why would I be asleep?” he responds coldly. David recoils from the sudden jab. His words made him feel stupid. He shrugs and blushes in shame.

Daniel uncrosses his arms and starts walking toward him. David felt like backing up but he felt it’d be inappropriate. It might offend the other, so he stood his ground and looked into Daniel’s piercing gaze.

“How was your date?” He almost hisses, walking around him. David spins around, afraid to let Daniel out of his sight. His heart is thudding in his chest. Daniel walks to the kitchen and David lags behind after a few seconds. He watches him get a glass and fill it with water.

He gulps. “Gwen and I had a blast. We talked and there were these two kids who bumped into us and they kind of sat with us while we ate. It was a fun evening,” he recounts his time with Gwen. He fiddles with his thumbs, nervous all of a sudden. Why was Daniel treating him this way?

Daniel leaned on the sink, sipping his glass of water. He nods mutely and puts it away. David watches his back tensely as the other washes the glass. “That’s nice to hear,” is all he comments. He puts the glass away and dries his hands.

“Actually, come to think of it. No, it’s not.” Daniel says.

“Daniel? What’s wrong?” David furrows his eyebrows. He considers moving close but he stops himself. There was a dangerous glint in Daniel’s eyes. His lip was twitching like he wants to say something but he’s holding himself back. His shoulders were heaving up and down. Was he hyperventilating?

“Daniel,” David risks it and walks closer. His friend isn’t doing alright and he has to help him. Every step he took echoed in the quiet kitchen. It felt like he was walking to his doom. He knew what Daniel was capable of. It suddenly scared him to approach the other.

 _No_. David shouldn’t paint him as the villain in this situation. _He saved me. He had to do it. I need to be there for him this time_. So he marches toward the blonde.

“Do you have any idea,” Daniel starts, putting his face in his hands and shaking his head, “how worried I was about you?” He sighs deeply and lowers his hands. His expression changed from angry to downcast, lips turning down at the edges.

David softens and his shoulders go lax. He only cared for his wellbeing. Something flutters in his chest. He opts to give him a hug, so he steps closer and raises a hand. “Daniel—“

David’s thrown off by how quick Daniel tugs him closer by his belt loops, crashing him against his chest. He nearly trips and on instinct, puts his hands up. His hands lay on the blonde’s chest. He was inches away from Daniel’s face and the sadness he found seconds ago was replaced by something more ravenous. David’s hypnotized by the intensity of his gaze that he didn’t feel the blonde secure his arm around his waist.

In a second, they spin and Daniel forces him back. David yelps as his back collides with the cold metal of the fridge.

“I was so worried that you’d replace me,” Daniel towers over him. David seems to sink back, sliding down bit by bit. “That Gwen would be the person you leave me for. I didn’t actually think you’d go along with her and when you did, did you know what it did to me, David?” he whispers. They were so close that David could feel Daniel’s breath on his skin. He shivers, eyes locked onto the other. Daniel expected an answer from him, so he shook his head slowly.

The blonde leaned close to his ear. David went weak at the knees. “It broke me. I felt so betrayed.” His lips touch his ear and David had to suppress a gasp. He kept stock still.

“Is that what you intended to do? To hurt me?” Daniel asked, nosing his neck. He manages past his bandana and comes in contact with his skin. David blushes and faces the other way.

“N-no! I never intended to hurt you,” David responds weakly. He feels Daniel press his body against his and the warmth emanating from him contrasts with the coolness of the fridge on his back. He yelps when something nips at his neck. He nearly slides down the fridge in shock.

“Dan—“ the words are stuck in his throat as Daniel nibbles fiercely.  A small sound escapes him as Daniel abuses the spot on his neck repeatedly with his mouth. David raises his hands but is only able to place it on the other’s shoulders. Daniel doesn’t back off, instead relocating and kissing his way around the other side. David grips the fabric of his shirt.

“From this day onwards,” Daniel resurfaces for a second, “you’ll know who you belong to.” He punctuates each word by kissing his neck.

David doesn’t respond. His brain was failing to catch up with what was happening before him. He releases a sigh when Daniel worked on the opposite side. A warm and wet organ slid up his neck and the redhead shivered. “Daniel!” He squeaked, face going red as he realized he _licked_ him!

The blonde chuckles and it makes David shiver.

“Wait,” David mumbles, feebly pushing the other away but he doesn’t budge. Daniel is not a force to be reckoned with. After a while, the blonde detaches from his neck and he puts a considerable amount of space between their faces. He cups David’s cheek and rubs circles with his thumb.

“What is it?” Daniel asks calmly. His other arm kept David from moving away—as if he could.

He takes the momentary break to catch his breath. He didn’t know he was gasping for air. His throat goes dry and his brain is pushing to make words come out. What he experienced was certainly mind-numbing.

“Daniel, what was that?” David asks. For a second, his eyes dart down to Daniel’s mouth. It was glistening with saliva and— _gosh, he’s smirking at me!_ David quickly diverts his attention.

The blonde slowly eats up the space between them. He rests his forehead on David’s and stares deep into his eyes. David doesn’t breathe and his hands turn clammy. 

“My declaration of love,” the blonde says. A second later, he laughs. “I’m simply marking what’s mine.” He rubs David’s nose with his nose and closes his eyes. David’s cheeks feel warm and he relaxes. The rhythm of the eskimo kiss makes his eyes close too. _What am I doing what am I doing what is he doing_. When the touch vanished, David’s eyes snap open.

“Wh-what’s yours?” David echoes. Daniel’s arm around his waist slip away and he rests it beside David’s head on the fridge.

“Did I stutter?” Daniel tilts his head at him. He’s looking at David's lips and it makes him self-conscious. He purses his lips and he glances to the side.

The distance between them becomes a bigger gap as Daniel steps away. He walks backward till he’s near the entryway, turns on his heel, and leaves David in the kitchen. David takes a second to breathe. _What on earth just happened._ He blinks, staring at the spot Daniel once occupied. His head snaps back up and he realizes with a start that he just _left_ him.

“What the _hell_ , Daniel!” he runs out of the kitchen and was just in time to see the blonde shut the door to his room. He approaches the door and raises his hand about to knock but thinks better of it.

“Can you please explain what the _heck_ that was?” David’s voice rose, frantic and confused. His face is still pink and he’s still trying to catch his breath. His hand comes up to rest on his neck and he shivers. He tugs his bandana around his neck and clears his throat when he didn’t get a reply.

“Daniel!” he shouts.

“Go to bed, Davey.” Came his short reply from within.

David glances at his watch. “It’s only seven!” He retorts, using his line from a while ago. He hears him laugh inside.

“Daniel, come out of there and talk,” he says, banging his hand once on the door. Curiously, he leans and rests his ear on the door. He couldn’t hear anything. A few seconds pass and he’s about to move away.

“If you make me come out now, there’s no telling what I could do to you,” he growled, and David jumped back finding his voice real close to the door. His heart raced as images of Daniel seconds ago flashed behind his eyes. He gulps. _What... could he do?_

“I have my diary. I can predict your next move,” he says pathetically. He bites his lip and waits. Despite saying it out loud, the redhead makes no move to grab the device.

He hears the blonde scoff although faintly. “And that’s supposed to prevent me? David, you can’t _evade_ me.”

“You’re evading me right now.” David narrows his eyes at the door. A few seconds pass. No reply. This time, he gives in. He opens his phone. The entries listed down their tumble in the kitchen but he skimmed past it. At the very bottom, he was hoping it’d say that Daniel opens the door to talk to him.

Except what he found disappointed him. He pockets the phone and stares at the door dejectedly. Daniel didn’t plan to open the door anytime soon. With reluctance, David walked back to his room. He stripped off his clothes and did a quick wash in the bathroom. In the mirror, he found the marks have started to form. His damp fingers trace the small bruises against his light skin. Daniel marked him.

He was Daniel’s.

Soon, he was settled in his sheets. His mind was a mess and all he could think about was Daniel, the man just a couple feet away from his room. He reaches for his neck again and he frowns as he stares at the ceiling. He had many mixed emotions. He was confused, frustrated, shocked—but he was also yearning for more. He groans and lies on his side. He falls asleep with difficulty that night.

* * *

In the middle of the night, the door to David’s room creaks open. A figure walks in with slow, careful footsteps. He inspects David on the bed, fast asleep. Daniel shuts the door behind him with a click. His hand tightens on the hilt of his dagger.

He approaches the sleeping figure. “This would be so much easier without you tempting me,” he says in the quiet air. No response, as he expected. He twirls the blade in his hand as he stares at David. His head snaps as he hears a faint _ding_ come from David’s phone on the nightstand.

“Why must you mess with my head like this?” Daniel frowns, then he snarls. He climbs the bed and strokes the sheets David’s covered himself with. He stares at the patch of red hair that peeked from beneath.

He couldn’t resist weaving his fingers through it. He brushes his red hair back from his face. This earns him a soft moan from the sleeping man. Daniel felt his heart clench. He raises the dagger, poised to strike.

He chuckles. “What would it be like if I killed my queen?” he said.

Slowly, he lowers his hand. He points the dagger’s tip to where he supposed David’s chest should be. “I hate that you control some parts of me. I hate that you make me feel rage when you are with someone else. I hate that I feel like I’m leashed to you.” Daniel says. No one replies.

“Call me a masochist but,” he removes the dagger from the sheets and drops it on the floor behind him. It gave a dull thud. “I kinda like it,” he grins and pulls the sheets down. He was delighted to see that David was undressed. He slips in the blanket and wraps an arm around David’s bare torso.

He hears the phone emit a static noise. _Good_ , he grins. _Wouldn’t want that being an obstacle in our relationship_. He lowers his face and kisses the nape of David’s neck. The man shifts slightly.

“Wake up, Davey.” He whispers against his bare skin. He kisses him again, trailing up to his earlobe.

“David,” he whispers. The man beside him shifts and he hears him groan. He repeats his name while peppering his back with kisses.

“Wha—“ David mutters. He hears him gasp and arch away. Daniel’s arm tightens as he pulls him against him.

“It’s just me, David. You’re safe.” Daniel mutters against his skin. He watches him relax and seeing him arch back into his touch spurs him further. He turns the other over and comes face to face with a sleepy David. In the dark, he couldn’t see his reaction. He didn’t count on it.

He kisses his nose first. Then his cheek. He moves up to his temple and his forehead. He covers every inch of his face with kisses until he’s sure the other’s awake. David’s hands come up to grab his shirt, but he wasn’t pushing.

“It’s okay, you’re safe.” Daniel repeats then pulls him to his chest. He nuzzles his auburn hair, inhaling his scent. David squirms beneath him and he pulls back an inch.

“You...” David mumbles. Daniel cups his cheek.

“I missed you in those few hours we were apart. I came to apologize for my sudden actions and for refusing to talk to you.” He massages his cheek. It was quite nice and warm. Daniel wanted to bury himself in his warmth.

“You suck,” David mumbles, falling asleep to Daniel’s rubbing.

“I guess I’ll save the talking for tomorrow,” Daniel kisses his forehead. It was his turn to be surprised as David nuzzles back into his chest. He wraps his arm around the man, happy and content. Tomorrow was going to be difficult. But this... Daniel could get used to this.


	7. Dancing all alone in the morning light

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The flash drive I use where I keep the chapters got corrupted and deleted the file for this chapter so I had to rewrite like 400 words no biggie. 
> 
> Also I realized that this may or may not have the usual 10 chapters. It might extend since ugh so many peeps I haven't introduced yetttt.

When David woke up, he neither expected his pillow to be warm nor his sheets to be wrapped tightly around his torso. He opens his eyes groggily and was almost surprised to see Daniel there. The blonde had already been awake, staring at him.

David wiggles free from his grasp and turns his back on him. _Nope. It’s way too early to deal with this. I am not-_

“Gooood morning, David!” Daniel singsonged behind him. He feels the bed shift as Daniel comes closer.

“Why are you here?” David groans, hands covering his face. Then he recalls the events of last night and blushes harder. Suddenly, his whole body tenses. He was still undressed. He pulls the sheets towards him.

“I came by to apologize but you fell asleep on me,” Daniel hums. David reluctantly turns in his spot to face the other.

“Daniel, I was tired. Don’t pin the blame on me,” David frowns, unsure what the blonde’s motives were.

Daniel reaches out to him and he flinches. Daniel stops, seeing his reaction. Gently, as if dealing with a wild animal, he places his hand on David’s arm. “I know it’s late for me to be confessing, but I’ve taken a liking to you, David. I’m sorry I acted so rash last night. I didn’t mean to put you in a position where you felt cornered. It’s was my infatuation acting up, although my actions are still unjustifiable and I am sorry to force myself upon you.” He says earnestly.

David relaxes a bit. Something in Daniel’s tone placated him. It made him feel like everything was alright. _Except it shouldn’t be_ , he reminds himself. He tries to tug away but Daniel doesn’t let him go.

“I want to say sorry in advance too.” Daniel says. When he doesn’t continue, David gulps and opens his mouth.

“For what?” he asks.

In a flash, his lips were on his and Daniel’s pulling back before he could blink. He’s a second too late to realize what happened and jumps. “Daniel!” He exclaims, not entirely sure how to react. He didn’t dislike it, but Daniel had no right to do whatever he pleased to him.

Did he?

What’s one act of affection to him saving his life a hundred times?

David covers his mouth as he stares at the other. Daniel gives him a toothy grin. A predatory smile. “I’ve been waiting to do that. But that’s not what I was sorry about.” The bed creaks as the blonde gets off and stands up. “I wanted to warn you in the future, in case you provoke my jealousy again. I can’t tell for sure what could happen, but I won’t be merciful.” He says, smile twitching.

The brunette wonders if this is how it’s like to be the mouse confronted by a cat. He shivers at his words and tugs the sheets closer to him. _No. You aren’t prey, David_ , his thoughts come back. _Yeah_. He stares defiantly back at the blonde.

“I will not let you use me like that again,” he says, glaring.

Daniel tilts his head. “Use you?” he says.

“To be your toy or whatever. You’re clearly having fun messing with me.” David forces the blush down and doesn’t break eye contact.

“You’re not a toy,” Daniel leans back down, capturing David’s chin with his hand. The redhead feels his fingers dig into his cheeks. “What a disgusting thing to imply. You are your own person, David, not some object.”

“Then why do you play with me as if I am one?” David yanks his head back. Daniel’s fingers hang suspended in mid-air. He takes a deep breath, and backs away. None of them say a word. He lowers his eyes and David stands up. He ignores the other as he finds his clothes on the floor and puts them on. He ignores him as he walks past him as he goes to the bathroom to wash his face.

He walks out and is greeted by Daniel holding out his phone. _His phone_. David reaches out to grab it but the blonde closes his hand around it. His eyes widen.

“Calm down, I won’t break it.” Daniel says, seeing him tense.

“Please give it back.” David says, eyes glued to the device. How could he be so foolish to leave it there?

“Hear me out,” Daniel frowns. “Can we please start over? From last night? I’ll try to be... less of a jerk this time.” He says.

David furrows his eyebrows. He’s ready to say no, but what if Daniel didn’t like that answer? Will he keep his phone? Seeing his hesitation, Daniel hands it back to him. David’s surprised to see him relent so early. He clears his throat awkwardly. The apartment is silent save for their breathing. David could hear his heart beat in his ears.

“How do we do this?” David asks, unsure if he should let Daniel go on with his plan. The blonde grins and takes his hand. Startled, David yanks it back. His touch makes his skin prickle.

“Sorry,” Daniel mumbles, interpreting it as disgust. “Um, well, we should go get brunch first. Let it flow from there.” He leaves David looking confused. David stares at his back as he enters the kitchen.

 _What is going on?_ David frowns.

He pockets his phone and follows him into the kitchen.

The duo spends the morning eating together, doing chores—and in David’s case, trying to avoid getting into awkward situations. This includes accidentally brushing his hand, looking at him for too long, bringing up last night’s events, or any form of contact at all. Try as he might, Daniel made it his goal to be close to him as possible.

Daniel eventually asks about last night and how he spent it. Instead of answering him with “you have a phone that monitors me 24/7. I assume you already know?” David recounts the experience and gets lost in the memory.

Gwen had been a good companion. There was no way this could happen in real life. Gwen’s kindness might have been the god’s doing to accommodate him in the virtual world, but whenever he was around her he didn’t care. It felt nice to have a friend in a deadly game of hide and seek.

He tells him of their meeting with Nikki and Max and how they kept them company that night. It was unexpected, but not unwanted. Nikki was charming in her own little way. Max was full of surprises and, in Daniel’s words, a negative ball of energy. He tells him fondly of how the two kids bickered and how at some point they teased David.

David skipped past the part where Gwen mentioned Daniel. He tells him afterwards, he and Gwen start jamming to music in her car. He turns serious as he tells Daniel what happened in the car. The flashes he saw and what he felt. The headache and the voices echoing in his head. He assumed these were his memories.

“Did you have those too?” He asks Daniel, who was sitting cross-legged across from him. The blonde makes a face.

“I think I have, once. But I don’t recall it being too painful. It happened when my group and I were in a chapel. One of them was talking to me and I couldn’t focus. I heard these other voices in the back of my mind. At first I thought someone else was talking to me but when I turned, nobody but brother Michael was looking at me. I heard these voices—they were deep. They weren’t... saying kind words.” Daniel goes silent.

David sits up. Daniel releases a breath, then continues.

“They didn’t sound like family. Acquaintances, perhaps. They degraded me and often threatened me that—“ he pauses. His face scrunches up as he tries to recall. “I don’t know. I don’t remember well. Then there were other voices, like a slideshow being played. Different events were playing one second after the other. Screams. Screaming at me, then me screaming. And it cut and my brothers were surrounding me. Apparently I’d fallen on my knees while encountering the flashbacks.”

“Did you find any clue about your past?” David asks, arms coming around to hug his knees. Daniel’s memory sounded horrible. Whatever lay in the past must’ve been scarring for the other.

Daniel looks at the floor. He shakes his head.

“Neither did I. Mine couldn’t have been three seconds long. I heard childish laughter and, I don’t know, a lake? What could I make of that?” David leans back on the couch.

“Maybe you liked swimming,” Daniel comments, shrugging. David thinks about it. He knew how to swim but it doesn’t strike him as one of his favorite hobbies. He shook his head.

“How about you?” David asks carefully. “Do you want to talk about... your past?”

Daniel scoffs, flicking off imaginary dirt from his pants. “I don’t think I want to relive what I’ve gone through before.” He scratches at one spot blindly, gazing in the distance. “But I can’t keep running, can I?” it was a statement and didn’t need David to answer him.

They continue on into a different topic. Daniel leaves it be, not bothering to elaborate his flashbacks. He didn’t need to. From the context he’s given, David could only guess a torturous lifestyle. He tries to not let it bother him but Zemuug’s words ring loud in his head. He tailored their lives in the other world similar to the lives they had in the past. In Daniel’s case, more _subdued_.

They stay home this time. There had been enough encounters for the past few days that could have ended badly for them. David occupies his time by finally checking out the bookshelf Daniel allowed him to browse through. As expected, the titles were all unknown to him. He pulled out a random book and thumbed through the pages.

He wasn’t a bookish person so his interests were soon dwindling as he leafed through more pages. He puts it back and wanders the apartment. Daniel had locked himself in his room again so David’s free to do whatever. He goes to the kitchen to grab orange juice. As he drinks from the glass, he recalls the terrible things that happened to him when he arrived. Being stalked by the third diary user and getting to see her eliminated. Or, well, be in the same area when Daniel stabbed her.

Wait. David puts the glass on the counter softly. Something nagged at him. The rules of the game. To get rid of the other players, they can simply break their phone. Yet, Daniel’s method of eliminating them has always been head on.

He was merciless. A murderer. He killed like it was second nature.

David washes the glass and stashes it away. The hair on the back of his neck raises as images of Daniel’s bloodied hands flash in his head. _So much blood_. He could almost imagine the substance on his own hands. Daniel had slaughtered his way to David, not thinking twice of the lives who met his blade. All to save him. He approaches the couch and plops down on it.

Is Daniel capable of turning that wrath on him? He furrows his eyebrows, and his eyes dart to Daniel’s room. The man hasn’t been hostile to him since morning. He’s being true to his words and being civilized around David. _But how long will it last_ , he thinks.

Another thought hit him. If Daniel took a liking to him, then he wouldn’t put him in danger. Daniel saved him, for Christ’s sake. Multiple times, if he may add. Somewhere deep down, he dreads it. It’s unreasonable how Daniel acts so possessive of him even going as far as to _kill_ for him. David should be repulsed, if not scared.

Yet, all he feels is safe. Of course, last night was different. But besides that, Daniel has been real protective of him. It makes him feel... appreciated. Did he have that in his past life?

Did David have someone else in his past life? He puts his arms behind his head as he looks at the ceiling. Now that’s something to think about, he thinks. If David loved someone in his previous life—previous world, or whatever—what happened to them?

A dull ache spread through his chest. He didn’t know who, if he had a lover, they were but to imagine that they were probably now alone and searching for him—that was a scary thought. He didn’t want others to feel pain because of him. The redhead frowns and closes his eyes.

 _It’s just a thought. I probably didn’t have anyone. But the others playing the game might_. He worries his lip as all these thoughts start crushing him. How many lives were being affected by the god’s decision to kidnap all eleven of them? Others may have families. Preston had a family. Maybe even Penelope.

What did dying in this world mean? He wonders if the god told them what losing in the game meant. Were they returned to their previous lives? David hoped so. He couldn’t fathom the thought of suddenly vanishing as if they never existed.

The air shifts. He practically feels it as the cold air nips at his arms. His eyes snap open and darkness is all he sees. The man sits up, realizing he’d been lying down on solid ground. He looks for the couch he’d been on moments ago, but it was gone.

“I sense many questions from you,” came a voice. He turns his head until he locates the source of sound. Zemuug was his size and sitting five feet from him. Cross legged like a normal person, except his claws were still visible and the hood hid his face.

“How did you do that?” David asks, scratching his head. From his experience, they only entered his realm by walking in through a threshold. He wasn’t brought into it unconsciously before.

“Child, I am a god. Anything is possible.” The god scoffs. There must be amusement in his voice.

“Please don’t call me that,” David mumbles. Zemuug bellows a laugh. It echoes in the dark, surrounding him. It felt like he was being mocked.

“Your lifespan is nothing compared to mine. You are, in my eyes, a child.” Zemuug says. This time, David stays quiet. The god taps his claw on what David assumes is his leg. “But my time has come. It’s why I’m hosting this game.”

“If I may ask,” David starts. “Why us? Surely there are better people out there fit for the position. Or, well, days ago I didn’t think that god was even a person. He was perceived as some kind of ethereal being.” He says. He notices the area has gone quiet. The first time he was here, it had been an artificial forest. Now, it was simply nothing. No chirping of birds, no rustling of leaves, just quietness.

“There are some things that shouldn’t be explained.” Zemuug says. “But perhaps, it’s time I tell you. You’re one of the few who aren’t corrupted. I hope in telling you this, it remains intact. But first,” The god sidles closer to him. David doesn’t move away.

Zemuug reaches out to him with a clawed hand. “Don’t fret. This will only hurt for a second.” He warns him. Before David could open his mouth to ask, Zemuug plunges his claws into his chest. The force knocks him back. Pain. He screams as fire courses through his body. It hurt more than he could imagine. His throat dries up as he cries out. The fire becomes ice through his veins. Icy agony.

“Wh-“ he couldn’t form words. Then Zemuug pulls back.

Air rushed through him and David dry heaves on the ground. He takes in deep gulps of air as if he’d been choking. His eyes darted to the god and lands on his claws. They weren’t bloody. He glances at the spot he’s been pierced, but his body looked unharmed. There were no holes or wounds. He looked perfectly fine.

“You’re so dramatic,” Zemuug comments.

David sits up carefully, hands roaming his chest. Where was the wound? The god stabbed him. Where was the wound?!

“My intention wasn’t to kill you.” Zemuug says. This catches David’s attention. “I simply transferred a small percentage of my power to you.” He says as if shrugging it off.

“What? Why would you do that?” David exclaims. He looks at his body as if in new light. He flexes his fingers and curls it into a fist. “Um, I don’t feel any different.”

“It is a very small percentage. It’ll help you later on.” Zemuug says.

“Why are you helping me?” David asks, desperate for answers. Nothing has been making sense lately. First, this god favored Daniel among the others. Now, he gave him power. This was an unfair game to those playing it and David felt guilty being given the upper hand.

“And here’s where the explaining comes in. The reason why I chose the eleven of you.” Zemuug starts. “I won’t reveal who the others are. You still have to find them on your own.” He says, a light tone in his voice. “But let’s start from someone at the top of the list. You may know him as Nurf. The third diary user eliminated him.”

David remembers seeing the diary entries on the third diary user’s phone. He nods. Nurf was the guy who got drunk and was killed when Penelope Priss threw his phone. 

“If you’ve met him, he may come off as brash and cocky. He engages in fights and in occasion, bullies his friends.” Zemuug says. “But it’s a façade. Deep down, he had goodness in him, however twisted. He yearns for a better world, a world where he wished nobody had to go through the abuse he went through. An apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, is what they say. But what Nurf’s father lacked in morality, Nurf had it hidden away.” Zemuug says.

“He was abused when he was young?” David asks, feeling sympathy for the boy. He hadn’t met him, but he wished he did. A troubled soul like him only needed the right company.

The god nods. “The world you know is full of miscreants. They lurk in the dark corners of the world and somewhere, people are hurting.”

“I know,” David mutters. He knows that their world wasn’t perfect. Far from it. David recalls faintly how he avoids these people in his previous life. He didn’t succumb to their prodding and was always the positive in their bunch.   

Who was this bunch? The fog in his memories doesn’t clear up and he’s left with a blank. Only emotions remained.

“I chose Nurf because he had the ability to change the world for a good cause. The last thing he wants is to follow in the footsteps of his parents.” Zemuug says and raises a hand. Between them, an image appears. It’s Nurf when he was a child. The images change, showing Nurf as he grows up into a teenager. He was abused by both family and relatives. He grew hardened by this and repeated the same kind of abuse to those who came near him. He had only a handful of friends—or those he tolerated enough to talk to. Even they were subjected to his bad influences.

“Why are you showing me this?” David whispers, a tear falling from his eye. Knowing that Nurf had goodness in him after seeing a slideshow of his life made him wish he was given another chance to live.

“People can go through traumatic changes and it changes the way they view the world. But there are a select few who maintain this goodness in them. Nurf is one of those few.” Zemuug waves his hand and the images disappear into a mist.

“But not everyone I choose are capable of doing good.” His voice lowers. “Sometimes it’s not about morality when leading. It takes harsh discipline and someone capable of inflicting the right amount of fear to keep people in line. Preston views the world as his stage, the people as his puppets.”

“That sounds like him alright,” David mutters.

“I’m sorry for what he’s done to you. Even I did not predict such cruelty. For that, he is serving punishment in the eternal flames of hell.” Zemuug says, then he laughs. “I’m joking. Burning would be too merciful on him.”

David shifts uneasily on his seat. “So, why did you choose him?” He asks hesitantly. He didn’t like talking about the boy who almost ordered his men to rape David. If anything, he felt relieved that he was not within his distance and may or may not be being punished for his crimes.

“Wait, hold on.” David raises a hand. “So, it’s true? When we lose in your game, we actually die?” He asks the question that’s been bugging him since entering the game.

Zemuug pauses. He puts a claw to his obscured face. He hums deeply, thinking. “I wouldn’t call it dying but in your terms, I suppose it’s more like moving onto a new life. Your universe isn’t the only one present. Think of multiple universes, where there’s another David just like you, living his ordinary life. Then in another universe where another David’s living his life, only he didn’t choose to be a camp counselor.”

“What?” David perks up. Is this a hint to his previous life?

“We have choices, yes? And we make decisions that alter the course of our life. Another timeline is produced when we decide to do the opposite. So on, and so forth. It is a messy process and I rather not discuss it with you at this moment. What I’m saying is that, Nurf may be deemed lost or dead in your universe, but somewhere else the Nurf who played this game may have woken up in another universe, same as the old one. But without the memories of playing my game.” Zemuug says. “Judging his past and the goodness I saw in him, I brought him into another universe where he had hope. His parents remain to be cruel but his friends are helping him cope. This time, he has something to hold onto. You must be wondering why I didn’t change his life entirely. Why not give him a loving family and the perfect life, to alter his previous life? Mortals don’t work that way. There’s only so much change you can experience before you start to catch on that something’s amiss.”

“You mean, he’s still in a fake world you made up?” David frowns. He thinks of the boy being trapped in another false world. _But, wait, this is a literal god. Does that make the world Nurf lived in now real too?_ David’s head started to hurt.

“Don’t hurt yourself over there. Don’t think about it too much. Once you’re god, you will understand.” He says, and hums. “Except, you won’t be. Daniel will be your god. You hope to reign beside him.” The god tilts his head in fascination.

David’s fingers dig into his skin. He lowers his gaze, cheeks heating up. He felt degraded that the god implied he was not capable of taking his throne. In a way, David expected that. He didn’t see himself as god but still hearing it come from the deity himself made him burn with shame.

“This isn’t the first time a god has reigned with a lover.” Zemuug says.

“We’re not together,” David manages to voice out, albeit a little reluctantly. He hears the god laugh.

“Only time will tell,” is all he says before changing the topic. “The Nurf who played the game and lost is now living his life as the same jaded boy, but with supportive friends. I gave him that because he deserved it. That doesn’t mean the same applies for Preston. What he pulled during his time here wasn’t what I expected of him. His lust for godly powers increased and he objectified those he used.” Zemuug says.

“But... you said everyone deserves hope.” David looks up from the ground. The abyss that stared back at him only unnerved him. He faintly wondered how the god looked like beneath the cloak.

“I said, those who deserves it gets it. Preston may have changed in those last few seconds, wishing to keep his followers safe. But it took him seeing them slaughtered to change his mind. There is no kindness in this boy. He felt no guilt when he kidnapped you. If it were Nurf, he would never order his men to hurt you to the point of breaking. He may get physical, but even he will be guilty of doing so. Do you see where I’m going with this?”

David’s eyebrows come together but he slowly nods.

“The Preston who played my game doesn’t deserve a second chance. Therefore, I sent him to a world of pain. Hell, is what you mortals call it. Of course, that isn’t in my realm of ruling. I have another god to help me punish those I send there.”

“Is it Satan?” David gulps.

“No, silly boy. Nothing in your bible is entirely accurate. You mortals think the god who works with punishment is a devil. That I sent him there because of his sins, yada yada,” the god waved his hand. The childish tone in his voice surprised David.

“He and I work together. You may even consider us friends,” Zemuug says lightly. “And just like I, he too has his beginnings and his end. And for that, he must find one who must replace him.”

“Are there only two of you?” David asks, eyes widening.

“No. That’s an absurd assumption,” Zemuug says, almost offended. “But that is not for you to know. Don’t you have other questions? Questions that are essential to your life in the game?” He asks, leaning on his clawed hand. “There are some things you can and cannot know. So we’ll set that aside. For now, we’ll talk about this,” he extends his arms around him.

“Um, right” David clears his throat. He tries to recall the questions he’s been asking himself that afternoon before he woke up in this dark place. “We had previous lives, right? Before you picked us off one by one to play your game. You said people may be looking for Nurf in our world.” The words still left a bad taste in his mouth.

David still can’t believe he’s talking about his past life like it was an entire other universe. _Words. Too many words_ , he tries not to think of it too much. “What will happen to the people we left behind? For sure, we have families and loved ones. Will they look for us? Just forget us in the end?” David asks.

“That is what happens when a person in their life disappears, yes. Mortals move on afterwards. The five stages of grief, are you familiar with it? They go through that, but they move on.” Zemuug answers.

“So that’s it? You leave them be? You don’t even, like, leave a note for them or something?” David frowns, throwing his hands out. His family must be worried for him. And his friends. Guilt consumes him as he can’t even remember who these friends were.

“Their lives do not matter if I am picking out the next rightful god to take over.” The god says, sitting up tall. David nods sadly. He understood. There were possibly a million universes out there. It won’t matter to him if he plucked eleven mere mortals from one world to play his game—their families be damned. The dull ache comes back.

“That’s kind of cold, don’t you think?” David frowns. “Don’t you consider what the people you chose think? What if we wanted to see our families?” Even people like Sasha, if he was right about his assumption, deserved to be with her family.

“Must I repeat myself? Those who lose in the game are transported to another universe, may it be hell, or a chance at redemption. They do not simply vanish.” Zemuug sighs like he’s tired of explaining. “And when they are transported to another universe, it’s just like living normally. They have their families, their friends, and what-have-you.” His claws trace circles in the air as if bored.

“So, you just let them... forget about us?” David slouches, a mix of emotions running through him. If he were in those people’s shoes, he’d be confused and devastated to find out their loved one vanished without a trace. It would eat him from the inside out.

“Here we are again. As I’ve said, yes. They do not matter to me.” The god says. David is silent, contemplating his answer. Something heavy settles on him. _Okay_. This is his reality now. It’ll take time for him to accept it, but he nods. Those in his past are now unimportant. He swallows the bitter taste in his mouth and pushes down the surge of emotions.

The god tilts his head. “You’d be surprised.”

“Huh?” David raises his head, eyes watery. He suddenly felt for the lives they’ve touched and have to leave behind. He wipes the tears away.

The god shifts in his spot, pulling his supposed legs to his chest. The cloak hid his entire body so David couldn’t tell for sure. He copies his pose, weak arms encircling his legs.

“What if I told you someone from your past is playing the game with you?” came the god’s words. It hit him so hard, David sputtered. He leans forward, eyes as big as saucers. Someone from his past was here. 

“Really? Who?” He’s inches away from grabbing the divine being. The desperation in his voice was as clear as day. The god isn’t swayed.

“That is not something I should answer. Sadly.” He gets up from his spot.

“Wait, no no no—“ David reaches out to him. The god moves back. He grows in size until he towers over him.

“Don’t get drunk on knowledge, David. What you know now hasn’t been revealed to the others. It will only hinder them more. I do not wish the same for you, because I trust that you will use this propel you forward in the game. Let it be an advantage, but not a weapon. Don’t let others take advantage of you. Although,” the god raises a hand.

“Let Daniel be your saviour.” And with that, David’s vision goes dark.

* * *

 

David opens his eyes and he sits up. It’s dark but the familiar material of the couch informs him that he’s back in Daniel’s apartment. A blanket covers him and he smiles. Daniel must’ve covered him with it. But... how long had he been talking with Zemuug? He stands from the couch, taking the blanket with him, and walks blindly in the dark.

His hand traces the walls. He finds the switch and squints as the light floods the small apartment. He wonders if Daniel is still in his room. His hand dips in his pocket to check his phone. It had been uneventful lately, since the duo chose to stay in the apartment.

His phone informs him that yes, Daniel was in his room, but not asleep. He was reading a book. It also informs him that it’s only 8:23 PM. Because at 8:30, Daniel will come out of his room to check on him. David stares at his door and slowly smiles. He won’t be letting him out, cause David’s going in.

He knocks softly on the door while he’s glued to the phone. He’s amazed as he sees the text rearrange itself, clearing the earlier diary entry. 8:30 PM, Daniel wasn’t going to check in on him. By 8:30, he’s sitting side by side with him on his bed. He pockets his phone when he hears shuffling and footsteps. The door unlocks and pulls back to reveal Daniel. The blonde smiles at him, leaning on the door. “You’re awake,” he says.

“So are you,” David comments. He looks at his bed hair and chuckles at the mess. Daniel weaves his fingers through it, combing it consciously. “Did I miss anything?” David asks, switching his weight from one foot to the other.

“Not really. You slept quite long,” Daniel tilts his head. “Any dreams?” He leans on the door, almost hugging it. David thinks of Zemuug. _Do I tell him?_ He shakes his head. His gaze wanders past him and finds the abandoned book on his bed. Zemuug’s words ring in his head. Let Daniel be your saviour. He ought to give him a chance. An idea pops up and David gulps.

“I just woke up and I don’t feel like sleeping soon,” his hand comes up to rub his arm self-consciously. He avoids his gaze. “And, um, well, this morning I tried reading one of your books but it didn’t really catch my interest. I don’t think I can read myself to sleep this time.” He offers a shy smile.

Daniel reciprocates the smile. He opens the door more and steps aside. David steps inside, still carrying the blanket. He hears the door shut behind him softly. “How about a deal?” Daniel says. David turns to him.

“I read you one of my favorite books. Maybe even recommend you a few I think you’d like. And in return,” Daniel walks around him, eyes refusing to stray from him. He sits on his bed and pats the space beside him. “You sing for me.”

David blushes and laughs. “Why would I do that?” He steps forward and occupies the space beside him. Daniel shrugs, thumbing the sheets.

“You said you and Gwen sang in her car. I haven’t the pleasure to hear you sing yet,” he says, grinning.

“Oh jeez,” David palms his face, chuckling. They settle in Daniel’s bed and David covers his legs with his blanket. They lean on the headboard and Daniel grabs his book.

“Well?” Daniel nudges him.

“Now?” David sputters, a smile snaking its way to his lips.

“Why not? We have the whole night,” Daniel checks his watch. “I’m not sleepy either.” He waits for him. David nearly pushes the blonde off the bed, seeing him grin like that. So he’s doing this. He leans back and recalls the songs that played through Gwen’s radio.

“I’d prefer it if I’m not under a scrutinizing gaze,” David says, coughing.

“I’m not scrutinizing you. I’m admiring you.” Daniel’s words light a flame in him. He covers his blush with another cough. Nonetheless, Daniel’s look softens and he leans back. David taps on his knee, a little nervous. He goes for it.

_'Cause I'm stuck in the sunshine riptide_

_Dancing all alone in the morning light_

_The sunshine riptide_

_You came in like a wave when I was feeling alright_

_The sunshine_

David purses his lips and tugs the blanket closer to him. “There, done.” He almost pouts but he stops himself. God, he was acting so childish around him. Daniel’s smile widened. David finally burrows in his blanket when the blonde started to clap.

“You are embarrassing!” David groans, the heat in his cheeks unrelenting.

“That deserved an applause,” Daniel laughs, tugging on the sheets. When David pulls it back, he finds Daniel looking at him fondly. “You have a beautiful voice.” He says, eyes darting down to his lips.

David fists the blankets and couldn’t deny the shiver that went down his spine. He gulps, “um, thank you.” He nearly sighs in relief when the other looks away from him. Just a look from him could make David breathless. _Dear Zemuug_. Daniel turns to grab his book and starts reading. It was going to be a long night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Art in the end is of the last chapter when Daniel 'wanted' to stab David. We all know he can't really do it lmao.


	8. Only say my name

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I changed a thing from the third chapter cause two months sounds... pretty short. I made them suffer more and lengthened the duration. Here's where I clear shit up. So basically, the eleventh diary user has been in the game for five-ish months. Each month, two diary users get sent into the game. But on the month Penelope Priss appeared, there was 3 of them instead of the usual 2. That's Daniel and David.  
> And yeah. Thought I'd finally say that since I have no idea how I could reveal that info anywhere else. I might also end up explaining what type of future diaries they have 'cause like the anime, they all had diaries that worked differently. Maybe in the next chapter.
> 
> I'm also changing the chapter titles to lyrics of random songs. Cause they suck and I've been making up random ones.
> 
> I should also probably warn you for um incoming steamy stuff *wink wonk*

Days pass and Daniel and David only left the apartment on occasion or when they needed to buy something to sustain themselves. For the most part, they’ve been staying out of trouble, which David is glad for. It’s been four days straight without bumping into any of the players. And four days since David talked to Zemuug. Since he and Daniel aren’t being summoned to his realm, he could only assume nobody has killed anyone yet after the Preston incident.

Daniel whistles. “Has the game always been this unproductive before? I sort of understand now why Zemuug put up an expiration date before he dies of boredom.”  He and David were in the room with the books. The shelf was getting dusty and they decided to spend their time cleaning up. Not one of their exciting days, but it’s all David could ask for. Some normalcy.

“Sometimes, I don’t like the terms you use. It sounds way too flippant about something serious,” David shivers, curled up on a chair and staring at the stack of books in front of him. “You’re so morbid.” The unease that should be present in his voice isn’t there anymore. David wonders if spending time with him made him familiar with Daniel’s view of things. Of course it wasn’t present in their day-to-day lives. It would come up randomly whenever they talked and the blonde would comment something unsettling that David had to pause and really look at him.

Now he’s learned to take it into stride.

Daniel laughs. ”What else is new?” It’s his light-hearted laugh that contrasts so greatly with his demented view of the world. David relaxes when he hears this, knowing for some reason that everything’s alright.

“Where do you find the time to read these?” David asks absently after a few minutes of silence, finger tracing the spines of the books set on the desk before him.

“Honestly, I haven’t the time to read everything. When I woke, it felt normal to come into this apartment and know I had this shelf of books all along. One of those days, I’d pick a book at random and at the back of my mind, I’d feel as if I’ve read it already. Is that weird?” The blonde turns around, in the middle of wiping the shelf.

David blinks at him. “Kind of,” he says.

“Zemuug must be having fun reconstructing our brain and making us think we belong here,” Daniel goes back to his shelf. David stares at his back, watching him work. It’s obvious to David that he’s been more interactive with him lately. Where before he felt the need to force out a conversation, now it came naturally. He smiles as he rests his head on his arms and listens to Daniel hum.

It’s one of those quiet moments where David gets time to think. He closes his eyes to Daniel’s made up tune. He reimagines the encounter with Zemuug and how scared he’d been when the god stabbed him with his own claws. It was downright _terrifying_ to get stabbed. And the feeling was just as horrible.

David wondered what compelled the god to give him a portion of his powers. Zemuug didn’t elaborate exactly why he did it when he talked about Nurf and Preston. _Maybe it slipped his mind?_ David thinks as he lays there listening to Daniel’s voice. His humming sounded like an echo.

Suddenly it’s like a door that’s been locked in his mind swung open. Daniel’s humming became two sounds, echoing the other—the other one was in his head.

_There’s a place I know that’s tucked away. A place where you and I can stay—_

David presses his head into his arm, eyes shut. He gasps as a light pounding started in his head. That tune was so familiar yet he couldn’t place where he heard it. _In my past, but where?_ He sits up when a hand touches his shoulder.

“Hey, are you okay?” Daniel pulls him lightly, a frown etched on his face. David exercises his breathing, seeming out of breath for those few seconds. The pounding subsided although partially. He wipes his face tiredly.

“I’m fine. I just—where did you hear that?” he asks.

“Hear what?” Daniel asks.

“You were humming something. It sounded so familiar. Where did you hear that?” David was tempted to shake him. He wanted to know if Daniel had something to do with his past somehow. Before he could get anything out of him, they’re interrupted by a knock on the door outside the apartment. David frowns at looks at him. He doubts they were expecting anyone over. Gwen visited them unannounced once, sure, but it's still better to be cautious. In this world of survival, anything could be a threat.

David slowly brings out his phone like a concealed weapon.

“I’ll get the door,” Daniel leaves his side to entertain the person behind the door. David doesn’t follow and instead stays in the room, closing the door before Daniel could face the unknown guest. His finger moves fast as he scrolls through his diary entries.

 

01

28 DAYS LEFT

 **[13:21]** _Daniel cleans the bookshelf while I sit by the desk. He takes them out one by one and piles them on the desk._

 **[13:25]** _It's pleasantly quiet and sometimes we talk. It's not the awkward silence anymore but a nice one where we acknowledge each other's presence. The past few days have changed us and I'm surprised at how much can happen in such a small time._

 **[13:34]** _Daniel moves onto the next shelf. I admire him from my seat and look away when I realize I've been staring for too long. He doesn't notice._

 **[13:37]** _Daniel hums a tune that sounds vaguely familiar. My head starts to hurt._

 **[13:38]** _Someone knocks on our door. Daniel leaves to answer it. It's not brother Nik, Gwen, or anyone we know._ _She introduces herself to him and says she's been interested in joining their religious group. She says she's heard about their cult on the paper and already talked to one of his people._

 **[13:40]** _Daniel invites her in to talk and offers her something to drink maybe. He goes to the kitchen._

David relaxes against the door when he reads the text. He feels silly all of a sudden for freaking out that they’ve been tracked somehow. He laughs breathily to himself. _Oh, David. You’ve become so paranoid._ He puts his ear to the door and hears two separate voices. He goes back to the desk, intending to fix the lazily piled up books to occupy his time. He picks them up and arranges them carefully in a neat, high stack. His gaze wanders to his phone for a second. 

His diary updates and the next words make his blood run cold. His apprehension returns full force.

 

01

28 DAYS LEFT

 **[13:42]** _Daniel is marked. The DEAD END is on his phone, even if his phone doesn't keep track of him._

 **[13:43]** _The killer moves in to stab him from behind._

 _Oh no._ David has never pulled open a door so fast before that he heard it bang against the opposite wall. He races out to find that the living room was empty and he dashes for the kitchen.

“Daniel!” He shouts, not minding the consequences of doing so. When he reaches there, the girl’s back is to him while Daniel looks at them with shock. The killer turns around and David’s given a split second to see that she’s holding a dagger before she’s pulling back and lunging at him with bloodlust in her eyes. David falls back and puts as much distance between him and the dagger. It became a fight for strength. For one second, he feels her weaken and he takes his chance. He swipes the blade and it tumbles out of her reach.

He’s tackled down with hands clawing at him instead. She digs her nails at any flesh she could reach. David is able to flip them over due to his physique, but his victory is short lived as she knees him in the stomach and pushes him back fiercely.

His back hits the ground behind him and he groans. He lifts his head to see her start to get up when a knife sails over his head towards her. She stops the knife by grabbing it by the blade.

He’s shocked to see her react so fast before it made its mark on her face. From his spot, he could see the blade was within centimeters from her eye. Any more and she couldn't lost that eye for good. Her hand gripped the blade so tight, blood started to drip from her palm down her arm. A spine-chilling laugh emits from her throat. She doesn't move to retaliate. David's jerked backward and out of reach from her.

Daniel carried another knife with him as he stepped in front of David. “You don’t get to hurt him.” The blonde’s voice was dangerously calm. David slowly stands on his feet and watches the exchange with fearful eyes.

“I do and I have every right to,” she snarls with a sickening smile on her face. David eyes the both of them and backtracks a little. Besides her dark skin and attire, something about her felt familiar. Her eyes were the same shade of blue that Daniel has. Her hair was the same bleached blonde color. It was like looking at a mirror image if Daniel was a girl and tanned.

“Or did you forget that killing was a necessary part in winning, diary user?” she says the last word with scorn and laughs.

“I did not forget,” Daniel says, stepping forward.

She puts the knife down, “Wait,” she smiles. “If you don’t want to hurt him, I suggest you stay where you are.” She nods to David without taking her eyes off of Daniel.

“If you don’t want me to hurt you, I suggest you leave him alone.” Daniel grounds out, finally breaking. Both men freezes when the intruder brings up her other arm and in her palm—

Was David’s phone.

“You give that back,” Daniel scowls, stepping forward. The girl pulls her hand away and squeezes the phone. The blonde halts in his step. David’s hand slides down the sides of his pockets and feels a flat surface where the phone should be. Somehow during their fight, she got a hold of his phone. This was _not_ good.

“How about no,” she grins at him, slowly standing up. She holds his phone in a vice-like grip and David fears she’s able to crush it in her hand.

“How about yes and you get the fuck out of here with barely any fingers left on that hand you’re using to touch his phone. Good deal if you ask me,” Daniel says, fingers tapping incessantly on his side. The brunette could see the dagger shaking from his anger.

She clicked her tongue and shook her head. “That’s not a nice way to treat your guest.” She frowns. She looks at his phone and back at Daniel. Her eyes move past him and lands on David. He tenses but doesn’t say anything. “Your man has a thing for throwing around knives, doesn’t he?” she grins at him, ignoring Daniel’s warning of not talking to him.

David shrinks back, not knowing what to say. The girl’s gaze doesn’t leave him and he feels chills run up his arms.

“I bet that’s how he killed theatre boy.” Jen taps the blade against her lip in contemplation. “Threw the same dagger at him and hit its bullseye.” She taps her forehead.

“In fact, I gotta commend him for that. Tell him it was a good aim. Too bad I predicted it.” She drawls, completely ignoring Daniel now. When David doesn’t say anything, her grin morphs into a frown. “David, right? Tell him I said that.” She punctuates each word roughly. The silence grew and she wasn't one to waste time on it. She raises the dagger over his phone. _No!_

“Now.” She grins in delight at seeing David’s horrified expression.

The redhead breaks eye contact and looks at Daniel. His heart was racing so fast, he could hear the thumping in his ears. He couldn’t make out the words first with his throat closed up. “D-Daniel.” He practically whimpers. He could see the blonde release a breath.

“You don’t have to do anything she says.” Daniel answers back, unconcealed wrath boiling beneath his words.

“Oh yes he does if he wants his phone back.” The intruder waves his phone to get David’s attention. “On second thought, I want you to kneel. If you want it back, beg for it.” The girl stares down at him. David’s frozen in his spot, not sure what to do. Her gaze burns right through him. She points the knife at the phone.

“Kneel.” She grins.

Daniel moves in and the girl swings her leg up, aiming to kick him. Daniel catches her by the foot and yanks it back. She loses her balance and falls with a loud thud on the floor. She swipes at him with her knife and catches him on the shoulder. Daniel holds her wrist and in one sick motion, breaks it. The girl screams and let go of the knife but not David’s phone.

Daniel soon winds up behind her and putting her in a choking hold. She writhes against him, trying to retch free. She elbows him hard in the ribs and takes advantage of the one second he was vulnerable, twisting and lunging for the knife she dropped. She raises the knife over her head, seconds away from plunging it into his phone. With a cry, she brings the knife down with a force.

Her wrist screams when a hand wrapped around it. David had been the one closest to her and managed to stop her in time. The tip of the blade was caressing the surface of his phone. With her broken wrist, she wasn’t able to put up a fight. David pulls her up with a grunt and she stumbles. With a hard-placed kick to the stomach, David’s pushed farther from her. Even in her state, she still held onto the phone with vigor.

She was gulping air and stepping away from them. “That was fun. I’ll look forward to seeing you again soon. For the meanwhile, try not to think of me too much.” She laughs. She digs something out of her pocket and throws it to the ground. The blast was strong and David coughed as smoke started to fill his lungs. He hears a crash and turns to the window. The smoke started to fill the apartment and he couldn’t see a thing.

“David!” He hears Daniel call out to him. He follows the voice, coughing harshly. He covers his nose attempting to rid of the smoke. He could see the silhouette of Daniel’s form and runs to it.

“Here!” He stumbles into the blonde’s arms as Daniel finds him. He tugs him forward and they walk in the haze. He hears a door opening and they walk out of the apartment. David exhales as he and Daniel get out of the smoke. Overheard he can feel water showering down on them.

“Must’ve triggered the detectors,” the rasp of his voice overpowers the small ringing David hears.  The sprinklers rain down on them as they catch their breath in the hallway.

“But there’s no fire.” David says in confusion. “Why are the sprinklers on?”

“Don't know, don't care,” Daniel replies. He crawls over to David and holds his face in both his hands. David stares at the water droplets running down his forehead to his cheek. Daniel’s stiff gaze bores into him. “Were you able to get it?” he asks him as if the fate of the world depended on it and frankly, it might.

The redhead bites his lip and his eyes well up with unshed tears. He goes lax in his grip and falls back to the wall behind him in defeat. “No,” he croaks out. David has lost his future diary to her.

Daniel’s forehead connects with his. Water drips down their faces as his hair tangles with his red locks. Daniel's eyes are squeezed shut and he’s cursing under his breath. David touches Daniel’s hands and nudges the blonde with his nose. “I’ll be fine.” He knows it’s a lie and shivers when Daniel opens his eyes. It could be from the cold of being drenched but he knows it doesn’t compare to being at the receiving end of Daniel’s stare.

It steals his breath as he waits for the bomb to detonate inside the blonde. “If she wanted me dead, I wouldn’t be talking right now.” David keeps talking and knows the more he opens his mouth, the more aware they’ll be of how worse their situation was becoming.

So Daniel lowers his lips and locks it with David’s, effectively shutting him up. David’s back goes rigid at first then he sighs into his mouth, his eyes fluttering shut. He lets his guard down and opens his mouth to let him deepen the kiss. He could feel his heart thundering in his chest and pounding the cage that was his ribs. The adrenaline of fighting, almost dying, and now kissing made his head dizzy. The fervor that went into the kiss was intoxicating and David reciprocated the heat.

As Daniel’s lips left his, he spoke in a whisper. “I’ll get it back. Even if it will take me days to find her. I’ll find her, bring back your phone, and her dead body.” He growls, fingers digging into David’s cheeks. The redhead massages the back of his hands softly. There was so much anger in him that if he was pushed any further, Daniel could snap.

He kisses him again and it’s harsh and bruising. It’s cold when he stands up abruptly and starts walking the opposite direction. David’s left on the floor to scramble up and chase after him. His mind is a jumbled mess and all he could think about was his phone, the kiss, and Daniel.

“Wait!” David yelps, trying to catch up. Daniel was walking so fast he could barely keep up. Once outside, he manages to hold onto his arm. The blonde spins around.

“I have to find her right now. There’s no telling when she decides to kill you and I’m not letting that fucking happen ‘cause of a mistake I made.” Daniel tugs his arm but David holds on.

“You don’t even know where to find her! She’s gone.” With his other hand, he gestures around them. Nothing was out of place except the shattered window on his floor and the smoke slowly drifting out of it. Where there should be a body after she made her jump was empty. The ground didn’t have blood or any sign she even fell.

“That’s one hell of a mess you got there,” someone says.

Daniel and David turn around to find a kid across the street. David instantly recognizes him and gasps. It’s Max from that night he and Gwen met the kids. He feels Daniel’s muscle tense under his grip.

“Excuse me?” the man narrows his eyes.

“You’re excused,” Max looks at him with disinterest. “I don’t believe we’ve met but with all due respect, it is not my pleasure at all. David,” he addresses the redhead. Daniel turns to him.

“You know this kid?” he asks incredulously. David nods. “He’s one of the kids Gwen and I bumped into when we were out.”

“You’re diary users too, huh.” They turn back to him. Max’s words hung in the air between them. Daniel slowly reaches for the dagger hidden in his waistband.

David grabs his arm discreetly out of view from Max. “How did you know?” He asks.

Max shrugs, hands in his pocket. “Call it instinct. A bitch fell through the window, pulled out a retractable glider and fucking flew away. I assume that window was yours since you idiots are down here looking for her. If that doesn't scream killing-other-people-to-win-the-game, I don't know what is.”

Daniel nearly tackles him but David’s fast to hold onto his arms. “Where?!” Daniel growled, his weight pulling David forward. The other is trying his best not to let him loose.

Max lifts both his hands up and mockingly steps backward. “Easy, mutt. I didn’t get a clear view but I was a hundred percent sure she didn’t hit the ground.”

“I think we’ve established that already when you said she flew away,” Daniel scoffed. David groans and shoves him back. He apologizes quietly.

“Look,” he casts Daniel a stern glare and faces Max. “Are you a diary user too?” David asks. The boy shakes his head. “Then how do you know about us?” He puts an arm up when he hears Daniel step forward. It wasn’t an effective barrier but he’s sure Daniel won’t defy him a second time.

“You know, he could be lying,” Daniel hisses through gritted teeth.

“Nikki’s one of you. She’s the fifth,” Max says, nodding to them. “Actually, she knew the moment you bumped into us.”

David splutters. _The sweet little girl had been a diary user?_ He blinks slowly, trying to connect the dots. _But... she didn’t look like she wanted to kill us_. “But...” he trails off.

“For whatever reason, she didn’t kill you. I think that’s saying something. And that bitch I saw,” he pointed up at the sky. “I don’t think Nikki likes her either.”

“Jen.” Daniel spits out the name like acid. “She said her name was Jen.”

“Bitch. Jen. Tomato. Toma-toe.” Max rolls his eyes. “Point is, Nikki has a proposition. She’ll help you take out Jen.”

“How old is this girl you’re talking about again?” Daniel leans back suspiciously. David gulps and stutters.

“Um, around his age.” David replies. Daniel looks at him dead in the eye.

“You’re joking.” Daniel mutters. David sadly shakes his head. His focus goes back to the boy.

“No offense but, what could she possibly do to help? And what does she want in return?” David surveys his surroundings and only now realizes they shouldn’t be shouting at each other from opposite sides of the street. No one else was around but that didn’t mean he wanted to take the risk.

“Oh,” the boy scoffs, waving a hand. “I forgot. Yeah, she recruited that other dude, the seventh diary user. If you want help taking Jen down, that dude’s got some good shit he can arm you with.”

Daniel tenses and David turns to him. “He’s the seventh. He’s the one who almost shot the girl—Sasha.” Daniel frowns in contemplation. “And if this is a trap?” He scowls at the boy.

Max rolls his eyes dramatically and lolls his head back. “Sweet jesus, I’m not getting paid enough to do this. Your loss. All Nikki’s asking for in return if you plan to join her is that you don’t go for each other’s throats. She’s trying to promote peace and togetherness and shit and she wants you guys to stop killing each other. It's hypocritical if you ask me since technically, she's okay with killing said flying bitch.” He turns around and starts walking. David calls out to stop him.

“This sounds sketchy,” Daniel says, narrowing his eyes. David lifts his shoulders in a _what-can-you-do?_ gesture.

“It is,” David says then tightens his grip on Daniel’s wrist. “But if he’s right, and Nikki really knew I was a diary user, it means something that she didn't kill me on the spot. We have to give this a chance.” He frowns and tugs on his arm. “Please.”

A tense few seconds pass before Daniel exhales and combs his hair back in frustration. “Where we off to?” He addresses Max. David feels himself smile.

Max grins at them and jerks his head his direction. “This way, love bugs.”

* * *

 

The house they enter was Max’s and after asking the boy why it looked unoccupied, he said that his parents weren’t around most of the time. He had a lot of time to himself and often had Nikki come over. It’s become their meeting place and every day, Max’s parents never catch them. They either didn’t care about their child enough or forgot he even existed. David frowned when he heard this, disapproving of the way they treated Max.

They enter the house in apprehension. Without David’s phone, he couldn’t tell what lurked in the corners of the house and if there were any traps meant for them. Daniel pulled him to his side and gripped his waist. David’s face heated up but the blonde didn’t take notice of this. When they entered another room, they spot the girl sitting upside down on a bed and flipping through the channels on the TV.

“Finally, what took so long?!” She jumped up when she heard the door open. The smile on her face falters for a second, then it goes back up again. “So you know,” she smiles gently at them. David allows Max to close the door behind him and he goes to sit on the bed next to Nikki.

“We were told you can help us,” Daniel says, getting down to business. Nikki lifts a finger, narrowing her eyes at him. It widens immediately as she looks between him and David.

“You must be Daniel!” She says, a wide grin on her face after connecting the dots. That being their closed proximity and the way the blonde stood guard over the redhead.

“Uh,” Daniel was taken aback for a moment, eyebrows knitting together.

“I’ve heard all about you!” She jumps off the bed and approaches them. “Well, parts of you. David, you totally missed the part where he looks devilishly handsome. But you don’t need me to say that,” she cackles, nudging David. The redhead blushes and is left stammering.

Daniel clears his throat after giving David an amused look. “Your partner over there says you can help us beat another diary user and he mentioned that you were working with another player,” he says. Nikki nods and crosses her arms.

“Right,” she says.

“And we were wondering how you could help us,” Daniel repeats as if she didn't catch that part.

“I’ll only help if you join me. Max told you what I have in mind, didn’t he?” She looks up at him innocently. Daniel nods his head. “Great! I really hate this goddamn game and it’s sickening to watch people kill each other.” She groans and goes back to the bed. She falls onto the cushions and steals the remote from Max. "Except her. She looks scary and if she's one of those bad guys, she can go die."

“So how do we do this?” David clasps his hands together nervously.

Nikki closes the TV and turns to them. “We call Pikeman.” She grins and reaches under the bed. David jumps back when she holds up what looks like a gun. “Jeez, take a chill pill. It’s just a flare gun.” She goes up to the window and fires it. A trail of red flies up to the sky.

“Won’t that alert other people to our location?” Daniel grimaces.

“Nope. Zemuug has this way of blocking people’s memories from our shenanigans. This is how we could get away with so much illegal stuff, as long as it concerns the game. So let’s say you kill your opponent and the police are, say, after you. Zemuug could wipe their memories clean so we won’t have them on our tail.” She throws the flare gun back under the bed.

David shifts in his place anxiously. He wonders if she got in that situation once and Zemuug got them off her back. But for Nikki’s age, he doubts she’s capable of killing. And her previous statement only strengthened that fact.

“So, what brought Jen to your front door step?” She rests her chin on her hand, eyeing them curiously. “Max told me she was after you that day during Preston’s show too. Looks like she’s got an eye on you.”

"H-how do you know her name?" The redhead asks.

"Same way I know yours. My phone," Nikki grins. "I'm not sure if your phones do that but mine instantly gives me the names of the players once I recognize them as a threat." 

"Anyway," David mumbles, going back to the topic. “How long has she been following us?” He finds a seat on the carpeted floor and motions for his companion to sit. Daniel sits beside him and practically glues himself to his side. His arm brushes against his and David welcomes the warmth.

Nikki shrugs. “Beats me. Max only saw her that one time. She was really suspicious and dangerous-looking so we didn’t pursue her. Now that you’re here, I assume she went after you again?” She frowns.

“She almost killed Daniel.” David mumbles, looking at the ground. “She put up a fight and vanished with my phone.” David rubs his face, recounting the story to her. Nikki’s eyes widen as she listens.

“Shit, dude. That _is_ a big problem,” she straightens up and sits cross-legged. “I’ll confess and say I don’t really know where she’s hiding out but if she’s within the area, my phone alerts me many ways I could corner her. A dominating diary, I guess you could say. It tells me stuff I could do to turn the tides and how to get the upper hand. Sadly, that involves numbers. That’s why I’m recruiting you guys. Pikeman was a tough cookie and he was a brick wall to talk to. But after his past with Sasha, he agreed to join on the condition that he gets to put the bullet through her head.”

“What past?” David asks. Nikki’s about to answer but another voice interrupts them as another figure climbs through their window.

“That’s mine to tell,” the visitor dusts off his clothes and examines them.

David didn’t expect to see a teenager in a military getup. His auburn hair was the same as David’s and it was stylishly combed back. His face was littered with acne and he had unusually bright yellow pupils.

He leans on the window sill. “The name’s Edward Pikeman, and I used to be Sasha’s bodyguard,” the distaste was evident in his voice when he grimaced. “I’m the seventh diary user. You can tell that I’ve been here for a while. Three months and a half, if I’m precise and half of that duration was spent being Sasha’s guard. Things didn’t end well and here I am.”

“Um, I’m David. This is Daniel. I’m the first diary user and he’s the second,” David motions to the man beside him. Pikeman squints and levels a finger at them.

“Aren’t you two the ones Sasha targeted that day in the park?” He asks.

“Yeah,” David exhales. “And you’re the one who tried to shoot her.” It wasn’t a question but the teen nods nonetheless.

“So what brings you here?” Pikeman asks.

“Jen’s after them and stole David’s phone,” Nikki answers for them. “I think it’s time we plan how to take them both down. Jen and Sasha have been quiet for the past few months and now that the first diary user’s here, it unleashed her future diary’s tracking ability. We can’t tell how destructive it’s going to be but I don’t wanna stick around to find out.” Nikki says.

“How’s Jen?” Pikeman directs it at him and Daniel. “She’s a worthy adversary, if I can remember. In fact during my time as Sasha’s guard, everything wasn’t as bad until that cunt showed up and filled her head with lies and hate. Jen pushed me out of my position and became Sasha’s right hand man—woman, or whatever.”

Daniel leans back on his hands. “Worthy adversary? I broke her wrist in less than a minute and could’ve choked her to death. I was pretty close too.”

Pikeman whistled and grins. “Nikki, you got yourself a fighter. I think our chances of taking them down have upped a notch or ten.”

But Nikki wasn’t paying him any attention as she stares at Daniel in bafflement. "Wait, wait," she starts to stand up. “You’re the guy who killed the third diary user _and_ Preston,” she gasps. She jumps off the bed and launches herself at the blonde. Daniel’s eyes widen as the girl hugs him. Even Max was wide-eyed and looking at Daniel in a new light.

The girl was sobbing as she clung to him. “Thank you thank you thank you,” she kept repeating in a hushed chant. David nudges him to do something when the blonde sat there frozen. Daniel pats her back carefully, confused why he’s got an armful of her.

“For what?” Daniel asks and let’s go as Nikki sits up.

“For ending her. The lady who killed our friend,” she looks back at Max. They share a solemn look, one David’s never seen on the boy’s face. “She killed Neil, the fourth diary user. Before Pikeman, he, Max and I were friends. We were supposed to meet up but we never saw him. He didn’t show up the following days either and we started to get worried. It’s that day when we wandered back to the same area and found his broken phone on the ground did we piece it together. Neil was gone.”

“We didn’t even know who the killer was.” Max piped up. “Until Nikki here got whisked away to a conference room and found out Neil’s murderer was already dead.”

“If she were still alive, I woulda cracked her head open for messing with my boy,” Nikki wipes the tears that slipped past her eyes. “But I’m thankful just the same that she’s gone.” She says, giving Daniel an appreciative look. After Daniel attempts at a smile, she crawls back to the bed and takes her spot beside Max.

“Now that we’re all friends, we should get started. Pikeman!” Nikki snaps her fingers and motions him closer. The teen groans and gets off the window sill. “Max is already my eye out there. You get these guys acquainted with your guns while Max and I try to find Jen or Sasha,” she looks around until she finds the clock hanging on the wall. “Though I don’t think Jen or Sasha will be out and about, since Jen could be preoccupied.” She casts David a sideways glance.

“That’s exactly why we need to move fast,” Daniel says. “If she’s preoccupied, David’s life is on the line.”

“I know,” Nikki frowns. “It’s worth a shot, I guess. Pikeman, lead them to your secret hideout. Max, let’s roll out!” Nikki executes a roll and enters a closet in his room. She comes out wearing goggles and binoculars around her neck.

“You look ridiculous,” Max deadpans. Nikki ignores him as she opens the door.

“Let’s go, kids! We’ve no time to waste! Pikeman, you tell them anything you know about Sasha and Jen. Arm them with anything you’ve got and teach em’ how to fire, if you guys don’t know already.” Nikki pulls Max by the sleeve and turns to David and Daniel.

“I’ve never held a gun before,” David frowns.

Pikeman grins. “Then let’s get you acquainted with one.

The walk wasn’t far and they arrived at his place. They go down the cellar but instead of having a small room, it expands all the way out. Pikeman notices the cut on Daniel’s shoulder and makes him sit on a chair as he pulls out the first aid and disinfects it. He bandages him up and leads them to a room where the walls were covered with all kinds of firearms. Pikeman takes one down and makes them follow him. They enter another room that was separated by a table and the opposite side had target dummies. It was a shooting range. Daniel and David were handed ear muffs before Pikeman readies the gun and fires at the target.

He shoots and doesn’t miss the red circle in the middle. When he’s done, he signals them to take off the muffs. He explains what ability the god gave him when he entered the virtual world and how he can use any firearm and still find its mark. The day he tried to shoot Sasha came as a surprise but knowing that her phone copied any of the diary users, she had the advantage and dodged the bullet.

They spent the afternoon talking and Pikeman telling them what he did as Sasha’s bodyguard. She often used him and degraded him, but he’s learned to ignore it. He confessed he might have even liked her once but her spoiled attitude ruined it for him. Pikeman confessed that the only reason he stuck with her is ‘cause he was—with an embarrassed sigh—scared of facing the world alone. So when Jen showed up one day being buddy buddy with Sasha, things started to go downhill for him.

He tells them that Sasha’s very dependent on the person she sticks with. Even as she ridiculed him, he knows Sasha didn’t want to be alone either so she tolerated him. When Jen took his place and became closer to her than he ever was, he tried to duel her for it but it was Sasha who sent him away with repulsion. The betrayal hurt him in more ways than one. It was that night that Jen almost assassinated him that became the last straw. He learned it was direct orders from Sasha herself and he fought back with renewed vigor—betrayed, angry, and the need to survive. He escaped with only a few cuts and bruises but he’s managed to make it far far away from them. He tells them that even though he hated Jen, Sasha was the bitter root of his hatred. And he vowed to act on it to get back at her.

They went back to the armory and Pikeman introduced them to the guns he owned. Some were from a friend that was no longer around and some were there given to him by Zemuug. Pikeman brags about his accuracy in shooting and David can tell Daniel was rolling his eyes. At one point, Daniel mentions how he’s willing to learn how to use a gun except when fighting Jen, he’d much prefer to stab her instead. This leads Pikeman to show them an array of knives and Daniel picks them up in awe.

The underground hideout was much bigger than David anticipated and soon they were walking into another room with punching bags and dummies. While Daniel tests out his new dagger, Pikeman leads David back to the room with guns. He puts one in his hand and teaches him the basics. David absorbs this knowledge determinedly as Pikeman teaches him the safety precautions and the do’s and don’ts. It felt weird to be an adult and being taught about gun safety by someone younger than him.

When the sun’s dipped low, David’s already in the shooting range watching Pikeman use a gun. Both of them are wearing ear muffs and glasses. He pauses from time to time to insert a helpful tip. A few minutes later, David finds himself holding the same gun, loaded and with the safety off. From behind him, Pikeman guides his hand and his stance. His first shot makes him jump and David blows out a breath. They continue this until David manages to shoot one pretty close to the center. He puts the gun down and whoops with joy.

Pikeman claps him on the back and when David turns, he sees Daniel watching him. He gives him a smile and David returns it.

They leave after thanking Pikeman and agreeing to meet up again tomorrow with Nikki and Max. The sky was dark and the stars have just begun to peek through. When they enter the apartment and open his door, David vaguely remembers they’ve left the smoke bomb in there. But when they enter, they see the empty canister and disposed it.

“It’s kind of weird no one else came to check on us. That window should’ve attracted attention and the smoke alarm. Nobody came though,” David finds the broom and a dust pan and approaches the shattered pieces of glass on the floor.

“Nikki said that Zemuug had a way of blocking other people’s memories, or altering it so that they can’t interfere with us. I think that’s pretty nifty,” Daniel plops on the couch and watches David clean up the mess. David stops as his eyes land on something peculiar. With a careful hand, he picks up the shard. The glass looked like it had been drawn on with a black marker.

He looks at the dust pan and shakes it gently to separate the shards of glass. All of them had been written on. “Daniel, look at this.” He motions the blonde toward him. He gets up to find surgical gloves to handle the shards with care and separates them on the floor.

“Something’s written on them,” Daniel says over his shoulder. They piece together the broken shards until the sentence sounded coherent. David pulls back and feels Daniel’s chest collide with his. He reads the sentence they conjured from the broken glass.

_‘You'll find me if I want you to, you won't if I don't. Meet me in 5 days from now, no more no less, if you want your phone back. Patience is a virtue and you'll be rewarded.’_

Underneath was an address. Daniel grabbed his clipboard with the list of the players’ names and wrote down the address in the bottom. David puts them all back in the dust pan and disposes the shards in the bin. He joins Daniel on the couch as he broods over the message they received.

“Should we go there tomorrow?” Daniel glares at the address on his clipboard.

“She said we won’t find her until five days from now. It’s going to be fruitless if we go anyway,” he frowns, taking the clipboard from the other. He steals a pen and writes over the list of names, adding Pikeman and Nikki to the list. Only Jen and Sasha remained as well as another unknown player. That leaves the girls to either the eleventh, tenth, or the ninth spot. David recalls something Sasha said during the confrontation with Zemuug and writes Jen on the ninth. 

“Right,” Daniel frowns. He takes the clipboard from him and lays it on the table. “It’s been a long day. Go clean up while I make us dinner.” He says, getting up the couch to prepare food in the kitchen.

David grabs a newly washed shirt and boxers they’ve bought in the previous day and heads for the shower. He washes off the grime and sweat from today, soaps any bruises and cuts he could find, and shampoos his hair. He leaves the shower refreshed and clean. It puts a spring to his step as he dumps his clothes in the laundry hamper and enters the kitchen.

“What’s for dinner?” David smiles as he sits down on his seat.

They fill their stomachs with food and feel the fatigue from the events that happened today catch up to them. David goes for seconds and so does Daniel. Once they’re all done, David volunteers to clean the dishes while Daniel could clean himself up.

David’s humming as he wipes the dishes clean. It dies down as fear settles in the pit of his stomach. He’s been thinking about the good things that happened, namely meeting Max and Nikki and teaming up with them, and meeting another diary user who’s willing to train him and Daniel. One thing’s constantly nagging him and it’s his stolen phone. Jen could break it whenever she felt like it.

David stashes the plate away and turns the faucet off. He stands there with a grim look on his face.

Any day now, he could die. And he has no control over it.

He puts a hand to his chest. _What would it feel like to just vanish? If she broke my phone, do I die normally like from a heart attack, or does a blackhole open up to devour me?_ David purses his lips, unhappy with his train of thought especially with the latter. He walks out of the kitchen downcast but stops as he hears the bathroom door swing open.

Whatever thought in his head was immediately wiped clean as Daniel walks out wearing only a towel around his waist. David yelps and averts his eyes.

“What’s the matter?” He hears Daniel laugh. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” his voice wandered closer and David jumps when he feels a hand touch his cheek. Daniel turns his face to meet his eyes.

“Are you alright?” He asks with a million-watt smile. David couldn’t help examining him from top to bottom and burns up when Daniel chuckled. “Gee, David. You feel really warm,” he tilts his head and looks at him with half-lidded eyes.

David feels his blood thrumming with excitement. “I-I am?” He stutters, hypnotized by his gaze. He doesn’t register their proximity until Daniel’s breath caressed his lips.

“Yeah, let me help you with that,” Daniel whispers and kisses him. David closes his eyes and lets himself fall deeper into the pit he’s dug himself. His lips move rhythmically against Daniel’s and he moans. Arms snake around him and he’s pulled flush to the blonde’s chest. Daniel deepens the kiss and their rhythm hastens. David’s arms wind up around Daniel’s neck and he chases his lips when Daniel makes a move to pull back.

David groans when Daniel licks his lips and opens his mouth for him to invade his heat. David’s hand rests against his head and his fingers get entangled in his still damp blonde hair. They kiss until they are out of breath and panting. Daniel doesn’t give him any second of rest as he attacks his mouth again. They move backwards as Daniel pulls David to him.

The redhead becomes all too aware of Daniel’s lack of clothing and blushes. His hands leave his hair as it wanders down his chest. Daniel’s own hand was stroking his lower back and David makes a pleased noise when he feels it go under his shirt. Daniel chuckles and kisses him repeatedly.

He breaks off the kiss and in one swift move, pulls David’s shirt off and tosses it aside. He spins him around and pushes the redhead against the door of his room. David leans in to capture Daniel’s mouth and works his hands up his body. He yelps when Daniel presses his clothed crotch to his lower half and _wow_ , that was unmistakeably hard. Daniel takes advantage of his surprise to deepen the kiss. David was gasping for air as he lets Daniel take it from him. The redhead holds onto Daniel’s bare hips and presses him closer. He goes red as an embarrassing noise escapes his mouth when Daniel rolls his hips.

“Oh fuck,” David detaches from the kiss to gasp.

“Not yet,” Daniel trails kisses down his mouth to his neck. He sucks on a spot, bruising it until the skin turns red. David isn’t given a second to breathe from the sudden spike of thrill coursing through him. He copies the other’s movements and sets a rhythm for their grinding. He leans his head back on the door, letting Daniel pepper him with kisses.

He bites his lips to keep the moans from escaping but Daniel wasn’t too fond of that. He grinds down on his crotch particularly hard and it weakens David’s knees. Daniel repeats it until the redhead couldn’t stop the endless stream of moaning from his mouth. David shivers when Daniel’s hand brushes against the button of his jeans.

“I know a better place where we could do this,” the blonde smirks and connects their forehead. Heat encased his body as he kissed him ferociously and rolled his hips in a delicious way that sent him wobbling. His eyes squeezes shut. He has to hold onto Daniel, afraid that he couldn’t stand when he opens the door. He clings on him, lips still locked in a heated battle as they move backwards.

David’s eyes flutter open and he gasps. He separates from Daniel as fast as he could and stumbles back. They weren’t in his room but he knew exactly where they were. Daniel groans from where he fell and David searches the darkness for him. When the lights come on, he realizes they weren’t alone.

“I’d say get a room, but apparently you did and chose the wrong one.” Zemuug’s undisguised laughter echoed around them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FINALLY some making out stuff! This is probably the first make out scene I wrote that lasted long. I am a s h a m e d *hides*


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